The government has postponed the implementation of its legal aid reforms by six months and its consultation on price-competitive tendering for crime work by two years.

In a written ministerial statement today, justice secretary Kenneth Clarke said the government will push back a consultation on crime tendering from late-2011 until autumn 2013, taking account of changes such as the advent of alternative business structures, in addition to the legal aid reforms.

It is anticipated that the first tender will open in autumn 2014 with the first contracts going live in summer 2015.

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