Sorca Clarke
Question:779. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Justice what additional resources have been provided to the Coroner Courts to address the backlogs that bereaved loved ones are currently experiencing. [35610/23]
View answerTuesday, 25 July 2023
Questions (779, 829, 842)
Colm Burke
Question:829. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Justice to confirm what action will be taken to reduce the waiting time for cases being listed for inquest in the coronial service, particularly in light of the fact that coronial service and families affected have been experiencing significant delays; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36161/23]
View answerColm Burke
Question:842. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Justice what action will be taken to recruit additional staff to provide support to coroners, particularly in view of the fact that the coronial service, and families affected, have been experiencing significant delays in cases being listed for inquest; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36351/23]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 779, 829 and 842 together.
Coroners are independent quasi-judicial officer’s holder whose core function is to investigate sudden and unexplained deaths so that a death certificate can be issued. This is an important public service to the living and in particular to the next-of-kin and friends of the deceased. Coroners not only provide closure for those bereaved, but also perform a wider public service by identifying matters of public health and safety concerns.
I am acutely conscious that any delay in the carrying out of an inquest can be upsetting for bereaved families and loved ones.
As the Deputy is aware, all coronial districts, with the exception of Dublin, are the responsibility of the relevant Local Authority. Neither I, nor my department have any role in respect of the exercise by the Coroner of their statutory function. However, the Department of Justice is responsible for supporting the work of the Dublin District Coroner’s Office, including the Dublin District Mortuary (DDM) in terms of finance, staffing, administration, etc., since 1 January 2018. As such, it would only be appropriate for me to provide details of resources recently provided to the Dublin Coroner.
Specifically with regard to the Dublin coronial district, three additional Temporary Coroners have been appointed to facilitate the significant workload of the district whilst the Senior Coroner holds the Inquests in to the Stardust fire deaths.
The Department of Justice has also facilitated the opening of two new Coroner’s Courts, in addition to Store Street’s Coroner’s Court, in the Richmond Education Centre, Dublin 7.
The related Dublin District Mortuary facility has also been provided with additional resources; in this respect the Dublin District Coroner’s Office (DDCO) have appointed two locum anatomical pathology technologists (APTs) and are seeking to appoint another. The DDM also established an APT trainee programme in 2021 and is currently preparing to run a second recruitment campaign to bring in additional trainees this year. A recruitment campaign for a Mortuary Manager for the DDM and Specialist Medical Higher Executive Officer role for the DDCO is also underway.
To further assist the work of the coroners in the Dublin Coronial district, my Department has embarked on a modernisation programme to explore the existing DDCO work practices. It is envisaged that the modernisation programme, along with ensuring resourcing is maintained at a manageable level, will significantly decrease the backlog of cases and, in the long term, accelerate the number of inquests which can be heard. A project team has been assigned to the DDCO modernisation programme to monitor and track this plan.