Proposed cuts to Scotland's legal aid bill will not breach the right to a fair trial, the justice secretary said.
Lawyers have voted to strike over plans to force the accused in criminal cases to contribute to legal aid if they have a weekly disposable income above £68.
Critics claim it may force people to plead guilty or represent themselves because they cannot afford to pay.
But Kenny MacAskill said there was no evidence the policy compromised justice in areas where it was already in place.
Scotland's criminal legal aid bill was £98m last year and the Scottish government believes its changes would cut it by £3.9m.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-20486875
not that im likely to break any laws to need legal aid, but i dont agree with this
£68 is not enough to live on, and like it says people will plead guilty, even if they are innocent to prevent having less than said amount to live on
and even if they are guilty, and need a lawyer to get a smaller fine/sentence etc, so it could drive them to more crime to compensate loss of income
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