The case mentioned by the Deputy was the subject of an ex-tempore judgement of the High Court in January 2013 with the written judgement delivered in January 2014. As the Deputy will be aware the Refugee Appeals Tribunal is a statutory independent body established under the Refugee Act, 1996 to decide appeals against negative recommendations in respect of applications for refugee status issued by the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner (ORAC) and to make recommendations to the Minister for Justice and Equality in relation to whether or not refugee status should be granted. As the appeal in this case has been remitted for re-hearing by the Tribunal, the Tribunal has yet to make its recommendation in the case to me. In the circumstances, clearly any comment by me would be inappropriate.
The management of the Tribunal is the responsibility of the Chairperson who under the Refugee Act, 1996 (as amended) is required “to ensure that the business of the Tribunal is managed efficiently and that the business assigned to each division is disposed of as expeditiously as may be consistent with fairness and natural justice ”. The Deputy may be aware that in August, 2013 a new Chairperson of the Refugee Appeals Tribunal was appointed following a selection process run in conjunction with the Public Appointments Service. Since taking up his position, I understand that the Chairperson has begun a major review of Tribunal practices, procedures and guidelines. In September, 2013 the Assigning Policy of the Tribunal was published, which details how cases are assigned amongst the various members of the Tribunal. The new Chairperson has also established a Tribunal Users Group which comprises of the Chairperson and representatives nominated by the Law Society and the Bar Council. I am informed that the group will meet on a regular basis to discuss matters of interest and/or concern to users of the Tribunal. I am advised that the Group has considered draft procedural guidelines which will set out the practice and procedure relating to how appeals are dealt with by the Tribunal. Other guidelines are also in preparation, including a comprehensive guideline for dealing with child applicants.
Following on from the appointment of new Tribunal members and the expansion of the Tribunal's remit to the area of subsidiary protection under the European Union (Subsidiary Protection) Regulations 2013, which I signed into law in November 2013, a comprehensive training programme has been undertaken by the Tribunal, to ensure that the new members are fully equipped to discharge their duties to the highest professional standards.
I am informed that as part of this training programme, the Tribunal has been working closely with the UNHCR in developing a new decision template designed to enhance the robustness of the process and to assist Members in their difficult task. This process has been greatly enhanced by the participation, via the UNHCR, of an internationally recognised former Canadian refugee law judge who has been central to the training provided. The Chairperson in his recently published strategy statement for 2014 - 2017 commits the Tribunal “to consider and decide refugee, subsidiary protection and Dublin Regulation appeals to the highest professional standards.” He has also committed to an ambitious reform programme to achieve the Tribunal’s strategic goals and to undertaking a review of Tribunal policy on public access to Tribunal documents, including the Tribunal’s database of previous decisions. I am confident that the changes which I have outlined will have a major impact on the performance and perception of the Tribunal as they are integrated into its ethos and practices in the coming year.
