There are a number of issues concerning the legal profession and its expert witness support as we enter a new year - and all of them are of concern.

There is, of course, nothing more guaranteed to get lawyers on their hind legs than an attack on their fees. So when the Government put forward its proposals to curtail legal aid in certain areas - a surefire vote winner, you'd have thought - the legal profession took up the cudgels. The thing is, though, that the reforms are in outright contradiction of the cherished concept we have of a fair justice system and, according to a report published on 9 January, won't even save half the amount of money predicted. The report, Unintended Consequences: the costs of the government's legal aid reforms, is of a study carried out by King's College, London's department of management and was commissioned by the Law Society. It looked into the effect of the Legal Aid reforms in three areas of social concern, including clinical negligence. It found the costs to the NHS of removing Legal Aid in that area would be three times the amount it sought to save. That includes the after-the-event premium for expert witness fees and reports as well as the damages premium payable in all successful cases.

Another of Dave's big ideas that has caused a great deal of upset is his attack on the 'health and safety culture'. In a sleight of hand reported on by the Law Society Gazette's John Hyde (Marvo Dave and the albatross trick) he moves the target of his sniping from the 'compensation culture' to a 'health and safety' culture. He derides the 'albatross' of health and safety law, saying his government will "kill off" what he sees as the mountain of red tape that strangles businesses. Yet, only look at the news section of any personal injury practice and you will see horrific instances of basic safety procedures already being ignored, with employers being brought to book through the testimony of expert witnesses in the numerous fields of work and employment.

In this, the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens, we are seeing a Prime Minister who is a caricature of the ranting Gradgrind - reminiscent of Timothy West's Bradley Hardacre in Brass.

Finally, the controversy surrounding the PIP breast implant affair shows no sign of resolution, and here again the issue of money may decide matters. The "will they, won't they" question of private clinics picking up the tab for replacement of the implants, which the UK regulatory body refuses to recommend, may come down to whether refusing to replace them will damage a clinic's ability to attract new patients.