I propose to take Questions Nos. 11, 12, 16, 22, 34 and 157 together.
The Legal Aid Board consists of 12 members and a chairperson whose terms of office are due to expire in 1995. The current members were, with one exception, appointed before I, as Minister for Equality and Law Reform, took over responsibilities in relation to the legal aid scheme. The Department of Justice representative on the board relinquished his position on 19 October 1993 to facilitate the appointment of a representative of my Department. I availed of that opportunity to appoint a woman to the board. I am determined to achieve better representation for women on the Legal Aid Board and I will take steps accordingly when next a suitable opportunity arises.
Legal aid and advice is available at any of the 16 law centres operated by the board. There are also 19 other law centres which provide services on a part-time basis and one temporary law centre at Aston House, Dublin for the purpose of the operation of the private solicitor pilot project. The location of each law centre is set out on the list which I propose to have circulated in the Official Report.
I have frequently referred in the House to the commitment contained in the Programme for a Partnership Government to the provision of additional funding to facilitate development and expansion of legal aid. I succeeded in obtaining additional funding this year which has allowed for the recruitment of 12 solicitors. A total of 29 support staff is also in the process of being employed, and, of course, I secured a special allocation of £100,000 for the private solicitor pilot project that is currently in operation. These developments in 1993 represent the first phase of a development programme for the board which has been devised in line with the commitment in the Government's programme.
I have succeeded in obtaining £5 million as grant-in-aid for the Legal Aid Board for 1994, an increase of almost £2 million over the 1993 grant-in-aid. This will facilitate the next phase of the development programme for the legal aid scheme and it will, among other matters, make possible the opening of a number of much needed new law centres. The number and location of these new law centres will be announced in due course but in the near future.
The waiting periods in each of the board's law centres as of 8 December 1993 are set out in a tabular statement which I propose also to have circulated in the Official Report. The statement includes for purposes of comparison the waiting periods in law centres on 23 July 1993. The combination of the introduction of the private solicitor pilot project and additional solicitor staff to the law centres in that period has resulted in very significant reductions in waiting times in most law centres. While the waiting period in the Athlone Law Centre has been only marginally reduced, at this stage, to 13 months the reduction in other centres have been very significant and in some cases are between six and nine months. As a result waiting lists now in eight centres, namely, North Mall, Cork, Ormond Quay, Dublin, Clondalkin, Dundalk, Galway, Limerick, Sligo and Tralee are down to between one and two months, in four centres — Gardiner Street, Dublin, Finglas, Tallaght and Castlebar — they are down to between three and five months. In the remaining three centres — South Mall, Cork, Letterkenny and Waterford — the waiting lists are now between six and seven months. The further development planned for 1994 should reduce the waiting lists even further and it will make legal aid more accessible to applicants generally.
The waiting time for each category of case dealt with by the law centres is not available. However, priority is given to all cases which require early attention such as cases involving child abduction, domestic violence, child care and cases which could become statute barred.
With regard to equality matters the position is that legal advice in this area is already available under the scheme. Legal aid is only available where court proceedings are concerned. While the scheme does not apply to cases before tribunals at present there is a commitment in the Programme for Government to examine the possibility of extending legal aid to tribunals.
I am aware of a study carried out by FLAC on the question of access to the courts in four European countries, including Ireland, which makes brief reference to legal aid in each of the countries concerned. However, this is not a comprehensive study of legal aid and so far as I am aware there are no official comprehensive studies available on the legal aid systems in the member states of the European Union. Comparisons between the various systems is difficult because of the differences in the legal system and resources in member states. I am, however, confident that the substantial funding which this Government has committed to legal aid will make our system comparable with the best of systems elsewhere. Apart from extra funding, the Government programme also provided that the legal aid scheme should be put on a statutory footing. That legislation is in the course of being drafted and will be introduced as quickly as possible.
I have informed Coolock Community Law Centre, at a meeting which I held recently with their representatives, that a development plan for legal services is already in place. The funding of their centre has heretofore been provided by the Department of Social Welfare through the Combat Poverty Agency and I have indicated to them that that arrangement is the subject at present of an inter-departmental review.
Law Centres Operated by the Legal Aid Board.
Cork
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24 North Mall, Cork.
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1A South Mall, Cork.
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Donegal
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Houston House, Main Street, Letterkenny, County Donegal.
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Dublin
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9 Lower Ormond Quay, Dublin 1.
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45 Lower Gardiner Street, Dublin 1.
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Tower Centre, Clondalkin Village, Dublin 22.
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517 Main Street, Tallaght, Dublin 2.
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St. Canice's Precinct, 44/49 Main Street, Finglas, Dublin 1.
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Aston House, Aston Place, Dublin 2 (temporary Law Centres).
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Galway
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5 Mary Street, Galway.
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Kerry
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6 High Street, Tralee, County Kerry.
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Limerick
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Unit F, Brian Merriman Place, Lock Quay, Limerick.
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Louth
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The Laurels, Dundalk, County Louth.
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Mayo
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Humbert Mall, Main Street, Castlebar, County Mayo.
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Sligo
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1 Teeling Street, Sligo.
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Waterford
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5 Catherine Street, Waterford.
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Westmeath
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Northgate Street, Athlone, County Westmeath.
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Part Time Law Centres
Location
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Serviced by Law Centre at
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Carlow
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St. Catherine's Social Services Centre, St. Joseph's Road, Carlow.
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Waterford
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Clare
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Clare Care, Harmony Row, Ennis.
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Limerick
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Kilrush Community Centre, Toler St., Kilrush
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Tralee
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Cork
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Health Centre, O'Brien Street, Mallow.
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Cork North Mall
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Donegal
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Donegal District Hospital, Donegal
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Letterkenny
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Dublin
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Town Hall, The Square, Bal- briggan.
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Gardiner Street
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Citizens' Information Centre, Roselawn Health Centre, Roselawn Road, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15.
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Finglas
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Kerry
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Citizen's Information Centre, St. Anne's Road, Killarney.
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Tralee
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Kildare
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County Kildare Centre for the unemployed, Lower Eyre Street, Newbridge, County Kildare.
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Tallaght
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Kilkenny
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Kilkenny Social Services Centre, Waterford Road, Kilkenny.
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Waterford
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Louth
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Drogheda Community Services Centre, Fair Street, Drogheda.
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Ormond Quay
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Mayo
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Ballina Community Centre, Teel- ing St., Ballina.
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Castlebar
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Health Centre, Ballyhaunis.
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Galway
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Monaghan
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Social Services Centre, Broad Road, Monaghan.
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Dundalk
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Roscommon
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Health Centre, The Crescent, Boyle.
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Sligo
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Tipperary
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North Tipperary Community Ser- vices, Loreto House, Kenyon Street, Nenagh.
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Limerick
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Thurles Community Social Ser- vices, Rossa St., Thurles.
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Limerick
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Citizens' Information Centre, 14 Wellington Street, Clonmel.
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Waterford
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Wexford
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Wexford Community Services Centre, St. Bridget's Centre, Roche's Road, Wexford.
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Waterford
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Law Centre Waiting List
Law Centre
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Waiting Time (months)
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23/7/93
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8/12/93
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Athlone
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14
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13
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Castlebar
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7
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3
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Cork Area
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|
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North Mall
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10
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1
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South Mall
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10
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6
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Dublin Area†
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|
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Ormond Quay
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2
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2
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Gardiner Street
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13
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5
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Finglas
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6
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5
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Tallaght
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12
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5
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Clondalkin*
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3
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2
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Dundalk
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4
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1
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Galway
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4
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2
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Letterkenny
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12
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6
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Limerick
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10
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1
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Sligo
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1.25
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1
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Tralee
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3
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1
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Waterford
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5
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7
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†Because of the nature of the service it provides the concept of a waiting list does not apply to the temporary Law Centre at Aston House.
* Aston House waiting list transferred to Clondalkin.