Vol. 470 No. 1
243 Mr. E. Byrne asked the Minister for Justice the proposals, if any, she has to introduce a structured programme of judicial training for newly appointed judges; and if she will give a timeframe for the implementation of this programme. [18399/96]
The Constitutional independence of the Judiciary excludes any action by the Minister which could be interpreted as direct interference in the exercise of their judicial function including imposing a training or briefing programme on them.
However, I am committed to assisting the Judiciary with any initiatives which they may bring forward in this regard and to promoting in so far as is open to me the training of the Judiciary. The Courts and Court Officers Act, 1995 provides that persons wishing to be considered for judicial appointment must agree to undertake training courses following their appointment and it also enables me to make funding available for judicial training courses arranged by the Judiciary.
The Chief Justice is in the process of establishing the judicial studies board and the provision of training for all newly appointed judges will be among the matters for consideration by this board. The President of the District Court has already introduced training for newly appointed judges, an initiative which I very much welcome.
