B.C. bar association decries trims in court spending

The B.C. branch of the Canadian Bar Association is seizing on trims in provincial court spending to allege neglect by the B.C. Liberal government.

The overall justice ministry budget is up $28-million on an overall budget of about $1-billion according to estimates, but costs have been trimmed in attorney-general operations divisions dealing with court services.

"They reflect that the ministry was asked to make cuts and they did and that's at the expense of services," said Kerry Simmons, president of the B.C. branch of the bar association.

But members of the public service, speaking on background during the budget lockup, noted that the spending cuts were part of a back-office centralization of ministry operations that would not affect front-line services.

Ms. Simmons said the province's court system continues to face a crisis in access and operations. "We would have liked to see new money in justice," she said.

With an election looming, Ms. Simmons said the bar association will be rolling out proposed "low-cost" solutions for the justice system that the next government, whether Liberal or NDP, could advance following the outcome of the May. 14 election.