A few simple clicks

Returning to the UK from Tanzania means a brush with the delights of Terminal 4 at Heathrow. I had been on an extremely rough (but rewarding) bush safari sleeping in tents observing birds and other wildlife in the Selous National Park. There are no computers in the bush, mobile phone coverage is patchy but somehow it all comes together and works rather well. Terminal 4 does not.

Several completely illogical queues snaked in various directions at arrival. Several thousands of people were involved. Tempers were frayed. Incoming passengers were tired and just wanted to get through immigration in the shortest time possible. But the queues never seemed to move.

I thought I would play my trump card. I had a relatively new passport with the electronic chip in it which apparently gives you the edge on those that don't have this. You can speed through immigration without a care in the world. No such luck. The queues for this new technology were even slower as retina recognition is still a bit patchy. Glasses and contact lenses are a glitch - although to be fair rather predictably so?

So nipping out of that queue I spent another hour in the "manual" recognition queue - but at least it was moving, not still and frustrating like the whizz-bang up-to-date eyeball/electronic chip queue. I understand the need for new technology. I embrace it. Most of the mail is now email and that works very well indeed. But some new schemes can be a bit of a dog's dinner (sorry Cosmo - our office dog, in case you are reading this column for the first time). Ten years ago a case-management system for my conveyancers was installed. After six months I realised that the department was not using as it as it was slowing the work down rather than speeding it up. I remember rather bitterly an early experience with voice recognition software that went badly wrong.

The bigger the man

The biggest disasters are, of course, large scale government software/hardware innovations. The scheme to computerise the National Health Service GP and hospital record paper system has crashed spectacularly at huge cost to the tax payer.

Now the Legal Aid Agency is "piloting" (I shall return to that phrase) a new electronic online legal aid application system which was supposed to speed up application times and speed up the payment process. Problem is that it does neither. Applications online are supposed to take a few minutes but take a few hours. The system crashes and error messages crop up all the while. Applications have to be done with the client present so seeing a client in prison is a bit of a problem as computers are not allowed in.

Those running the pilot at the LAA seem to change with increasing regularity. Initially it was supposed to be a project that was due to be rolled out nationally later this year but that now looks very doubtful, as there are just so many unresolved problems. Running a legal aid office is stressful enough without having to take on board another new project which is going to make the work even more uneconomical.

I had anticipated, and indeed had been told that this project would be "piloted" '¨in the north-east of England, the results '¨of the pilot reviewed and then the profession could comment on the proposals. Now it seems that the Legal Aid Agency is going to proceed with the scheme come what may.

The pilot is not really a pilot just an advance guard. Indeed, reading between the lines, it would seem that the real reason for introducing electronic working is to save money at the LAA. It is not a scheme to help us poor ravaged legal aid lawyers but a scheme to save the government money. I wonder when they might come to their senses?

Quick and easy

New technology needs to be embraced '¨by us all. But obviously you get what '¨you pay for, and this project which involves "off-the-peg" software rather than purpose built software appears to be hopelessly flawed. Wouldn't it have been nice if '¨legal aid applications were like buying a book on Amazon? Or ordering flowers from Interflora?

The other day I spent rather a lot of money on a new camera for my son. '¨Three clicks and it was done. Why can't we have a proper legal aid application and payment system that reaps rewards for the LAA and the profession? Buying software off-the-peg is an economy that the LAA may live to regret.