A Cheann Comhairle, I thank you for affording me the opportunity to raise this matter on the Adjournment and with your permission, I would like to share my time with Deputy Deenihan.
Adjournment Debate. - Courts Staff Industrial Action.
Is that satisfactory? Agreed.
Industrial action by courts staff is now in its tenth week and has effectively brought the work of the District and Circuit Courts to a standstill. The Civil and Public Service Union have now applied to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions for an all out picket. If this application is successful the country's legal system could be thrown into chaos. I understand that the claim in this dispute was lodged 16 months ago and up to today there have been no substantive discussions because the Minister, and his Department, have refused to go into the issues involved.
The dispute centres on a claim by the union that their members have been asked to deal with an increased workload and accept greater responsibility as a consequence of increases in the jurisdictions of the District and Circuit Courts. I am aware, of course, that any upgradings would cost money. I suggest to the Minister that if the current lodgment fee and search fee in the County Sheriff's office, which were fixed in 1963 at 35p and 37p respectively, were updated to current money values, the extra revenue would meet the cost of the upgradings.
I am concerned that there is insufficient awareness of the seriousness of this dispute and the potential serious consequences for our system of justice and the commercial life of the country. It is imperative, therefore, that this dispute be brought to an end immediately. The Minister for Justice has a responsibility to ensure that an efficient and adequate courts service is provided. He is also responsible for industrial relations with staff employed by the Department of Justice.
I would like to outline to the House some of the effects of this dispute. First, applications for grants of probate and administration are not being processed outside the Dublin area. Second, applications for bar extensions for special functions cannot be heard by the courts, likewise, annual applications for renewals of publicans' and hoteliers' licences and transfers of licences are affected. Third, solicitors involved in house sales and conveyancing cannot check whether a vendor of a property is in a position to sell and consequently, house purchases and sales are being delayed. The fourth effect concerns time limits. Certain time limits are imposed for taking legal action. In the absence of documents being stamped the time limit may run out for some litigants, that is, of course, because their claims will become statute barred. Similarly, time limits apply for appealing a judgment of a lower court to a higher court. The fifth effect of the dispute is that new civil claims of any kind are not being processed; and the sixth is that in most parts of the country outside Dublin no jurors have been summoned and no list of cases printed for Circuit Criminal Court cases. This means that the parties to a case, witnesses and so on, will not know until the last minute whether their cases will be heard and, if so, when. The seventh effect concerns the range of functions clerical officers and clerical assistants are refusing to perform such as processing of appeals from the District Court to the Circuit Court and from the Circuit Court to the High Court, to act as a court registrar, to process judgment papers, draft orders, civil bills, endorsement of driving licences and disqualifications. It is clear from what I have said that if this dispute is allowed to continue the courts of this land will be brought to a standstill.
The background to the present dispute in the Circuit and District Court offices is that the union representing the 270 or so clerical officers and clerical assistants, the CPSU, requested a number of upgradings for these officials and recognition of the fact that the jurisdiction of the courts has recently doubled. Initially, the Department offered 42 upgradings which was later increased to 62. This was not accepted by the union. The union reduced their claim to 79 upgradings from 120 at the time of the breakdown of talks with the Minister.
I am sorry to tell the Deputy his time is exhausted.
The consequences of this dispute did not seriously impinge on the public perception until the courts commenced two and a half weeks ago.
The time has come to call the Minister of State to reply.
I appeal to the Minister of State to react promptly.
I would like first of all to express our deep concern, at the disruption to the courts, resulting from the industrial action currently being engaged in by clerical staff; in the courts offices, who are members of the Civil and Public Service Union. I would like to assure the House that every effort was made on our behalf by officials of our Department in the course of discussions with the Civil and Public Service union, to avoid this action.
The stance adopted by the officials in the discussions was a most flexible and conciliatory one, notwithstanding the refusal of the union to suspend industrial action during the discussions. However, after lengthy talks the union on 10 October refused to accept our offer of an increase of almost 50 per cent in the number of upgradings previously offered.
Following this refusal we expressed our disappointment at the attitude of the union to what was by any standards a reasonable and generous offer and we stressed that officials of the Department were available at all times to meet with the CPSU and tonight I again appeal to the members of the union to resume normal working arrangements.
There has been contact between both sides in the dispute today and I believe the best prospect of an early resolution of the dispute lies in continued contact between the parties. I hope that the contact currently prevailing will continue and will prove fruitful. I am sure the House will appreciate that in the circumstances the less I say here today the better the chances will be of settling the dispute.
I would like to put it to the House that it would not be helpful or conducive to good industrial relations to conduct negotiations across the Floor of this House and I hope that Deputies on all sides would share this view.
The dispute can be settled for £7,000.
Deputy Deenihan should desist.