An opinion poll of GPs published today (3rd December) by LAG has found a majority of doctors believed that the number of their patients who would have benefited from legal or specialist advice has increased in the past year. This is at a time in which people have less chance of obtaining the help they need due to cuts in civil legal aid.   LAG was surprised how conclusive the results of the poll were. Issues with benefits led the way with two thirds of GPs (67%) reporting the number of patients who needed legal advice in this area had increased in the last year. This was followed closely by debts/financial problems and issues at work, 65% of GPs reported an increase for both. Just over half (54%) of GPs reported the number of patients with housing problems who would have benefited from legal advice had increased and a similar proportion (55%) reported the same regarding community care. The lowest proportion was for advice on immigration law, at 30%.   A total of 88% of the GPs questioned agreed that patients not being able to get legal or specialist advice about their problems would have a negative impact on their health either to a great or to some extent.   In April 2013 the government introduced deep cuts to legal aid for what are referred to as social welfare law (SWL) cases. Since then civil legal aid has no-longer been available in benefits and employment cases. It has also been severely restricted for housing, debt and immigration cases. In a pre-legislative impact assessment prepared by the Ministry of Justice three years ago, it was estimated that 54% of the client group hit by the cut to benefits advice would be ill and/or disabled.  LAG concludes that the findings of our poll of GPs is a reflection of the government’s own prediction about the disproportionate impact the cuts to civil legal aid for SWL advice would have on sick and disabled people.   According to a report published recently by the National Audit Office (NAO), the Government has cut spending on civil legal aid by £300m since April 2013 (£32m more than they projected). The NAO report warned that people who had previously received advice might well suffer health and other problems, which would have a knock-on impact on public services.   The poll of GPs was conducted for LAG in October by the polling and research company, ComRes. The research was supported by the Law Society, which is funding LAG to conduct independent research about the impact on the public of government cuts to civil legal aid. A previous poll, published in July, showed little public support for reductions in civil legal aid.   LAG believes that this polling evidence demonstrates the false economy of cutting legal aid for common everyday problems. With early advice many social welfare law problems can be simple to resolve, but without this they can spiral out of control. This leads to injustice for many people and greater costs to health and other services. These findings we suggest adds weight to the argument that the government should look at reinstating legal aid for SWL cases, or implement one of the key findings of the independent Low Commission, which is to establish a National Advice and Legal Support Fund to develop the provision of SWL in local communities.