Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 December 2013
312. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the reason the minimum charge for legal aid services has increased from €50 to €130; and if he will consider having all or part of this waived in the case of those who are in financial difficulty. [51898/13]
View answerThe Regulations recently introduced are intended, inter alia, to raise additional funding to be retained by the Board to better fund the provision of services to those in need of them and reduce waiting times for those services. At a time when the State is facing significant demands on its resources, an increase in contributions allows the Board to achieve its objectives without money being diverted from other programmes. The increased contributions should result in increased funding of up to €700,000 per annum being available to the Board once the increases have full impact.
There has been a very significant increase in demand for civil legal aid in the last number of years and while I have sought to protect the Board's budget, waiting times for the Board's non prioritised services have increased due to a major increase in demand for services. I believe this additional resource for the Board will assist it in tackling those waiting times. I am conscious that the increase in the minimum contribution as a percentage is significant. However I believe the contributions payable still compare favourably with other jurisdictions, many of which require ongoing payments for certain legal aid matters. Provisions remain in place to allow the contribution to be waived in hardship cases. I know that the Board has in place a process for considering applications for waivers or reductions in the contribution and that it does so where not to do so would create undue hardship.
I should point out that those Regulations abolished the contribution where a parent is seeking legal services from the Legal Aid Board to defend proceedings instituted by the Health Service Executive in relation to the welfare of the child. I took this approach on the basis that these cases are public law matters and the parent is facing the might of the State. I should also point out that all asylum seekers in receipt of civil legal services for asylum related matters will pay a once-off contribution of €10.
