BIRMINGHAM PUB BOMBINGS 1974 - FUNDING FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW OF THE CORONER

That this House endorses the backing given in 2016 and 2018 by the Coroner to the Birmingham Pub Bombings 1974 to legal aid funding applications by the bereaved families; notes that 10 such families successfully challenged the Coroner's ruling on the scope of the inquest by way of judicial review in 2018 and supports their being enabled to participate effectively in any further legal proceedings on the matter; expresses concern about the decision of the Legal Aid Agency to refuse legal aid on the ground of financial eligibility, despite having previously decided that funding could be provided to enable effective participation by the families at the inquest into the deaths of their loved ones; and further expresses concern that although those families have sufficient funds as ordinary working people, the current arrangements for funding the victims of crime in complex multi-death inquests and related legal proceedings are iniquitous and not fit for purpose.