Holly Cairns
Question:48. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Justice if she will provide her response to the annual report from an organisation (details supplied). [60306/22]
View answerTuesday, 6 December 2022
Questions (48)
Written answers
I acknowledge the important role the Free Legal Advice Centres (FLAC) play in the provision of legal information, advice and advocacy work. It also engages regularly with my Department on access to justice matters.
I am pleased to say that my Department provides substantial annual funding to ensure that it can continue working to help people with legal problems. In Budget 2021, Minister McEntee trebled the funding to FLAC and maintained that level of funding in 2022 and 2023.
As such, I have noted the publication of the FLAC’s annual report for 2021. The report notes, among other things, that last year FLAC received the highest number of calls made to the referral line since 2015, with over 13,000 calls. It also notes that almost a third of all queries to its Telephone Information and Referral Line related to family law matters.
Reforming Family Courts is a Programme for Government commitment and a priority for my Department. Ensuring we have a more efficient and user-friendly family court system that puts children and families at the centre of its work is the central focus of these reforms. I am pleased to say that two important milestones have been recently reached in this area. On the 16th of November, Minister McEntee published the first National Family Justice Strategy. Following Government approval, the Family Courts Bill 2022 was published last Thursday, 1st December. Together, the Strategy and the Bill will provide many of the building blocks essential to the reform of the family justice system.
As the Deputy will be aware, Minister McEntee was committed since coming into office to undertake a comprehensive review of the Civil Legal Aid Scheme. The Minister established the Review Group in June this year, a moment which FLAC described as very significant in the history of access to justice.
The Review Group held its first meeting on 22 June 2022, and its work is now ongoing. The Review Group is being chaired by retired Chief Justice Frank Clarke, with membership drawn from those who work with marginalised groups, legal practitioners, academics, Department officials and representatives from the Legal Aid Board, which administers the current Scheme. FLAC is an important member of the Review Group and its insights will be of great value as the Group’s work continues.
On 14th November, Minister McEntee welcomed the opening of a consultation to seek the views of key stakeholders on how the Civil Legal Aid Scheme can be reformed.
This call for submissions is the first element of what I understand will be a multi-phased consultation process. It is an important opportunity for stakeholders to express their views and inform the Group’s thinking on the current scheme and its recommendations for the future.
Full details of the submission process can be found here: www.gov.ie/en/consultation/a7aa6-stakeholder-consultation-on-the-review-of-the-civil-legal-aid-scheme/.