Dáil Éireann Debate, Monday - 11 September 2023
526. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform if he will provide an update on engagements he has had with the Department of Justice in relation to the restoration of barrister fees under the criminal justice (legal aid) scheme following FEMPI cuts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37961/23]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, as part of a broader Government agenda to reduce escalating legal costs, the Minister for Justice exercised powers conferred to them under section 10(1)(b) of the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Act 1962 to apply reductions to professional fees paid to barristers under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme in 2009, 2010 and 2011. These reductions were underpinned by Government decisions and formed part of a broader Government need to reduce costs across the public service.
I fully acknowledge and appreciate the important work undertaken in this area and annual expenditure under the Scheme has risen by 44% since 2016, which gives some sense of the scale of the State’s investment in this area.
The Department of Justice established a Criminal Legal Aid Oversight Committee in 2016, and I understand that the Department has recently decided to refocus the work of the Committee to, amongst other things, advise on the necessary reforms to the scheme. I note that the Minister for Justice and the Minister of State for Law Reform recently published the General Scheme of the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid Bill) 2023. This Bill will enable the future modernisation of some of the administrative processes for the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme and strengthen oversight and governance structures. I have asked that such improvements are pursued at the earliest opportunity.
My officials continue to engage with their counterparts in the Department of Justice on this matter, and it is important that any proposal to adjust legal fees paid under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme is considered in the context of reform measures that improve the administration of justice, support a transparent and rational framework for providing legal aid, and which help to control costs which have increased very substantially in recent years.
