Legal aid U-turn over price competition plan

Plans to cut the legal aid bill by awarding contracts to the lowest bidder have been dropped, Justice Secretary Chris Grayling has announced.

In an interview with the Times newspaper, Mr Grayling said the move was part of a deal he had reached with the Law Society for England and Wales.

Opponents of the policy had warned the policy would "irrevocably damage the criminal justice system".

But other cuts to legal aid are expected to go ahead.

Clive Coleman reports.