FCA to appeal fraud trial decision

A politically embarrassing decision to throw out a multi-million pound fraud trial on the grounds that legal aid cuts prevented defendants from securing barristers to represent them is to be challenged by the City watchdog bringing the case.

The Prime Minister's brother, Alexander Cameron QC, successfully argued that the case should be halted because the controversial Ministry of Justice (MoJ) reforms meant the five defendants could not find barristers of ''sufficient competence".