I am aware of the position regarding the granting and refusal of divorce since the introduction of the relevant legislation. In this regard, I refer the Deputy to my reply to Question No. 131 of 5 October 2000 which contains statistical tables for the legal years ending 31 July 1995 to 31 July 1999.
As the Deputy will be aware, I established the Courts Service on 9 November 1999. One of the statutory functions of the Courts Service is to provide information on the courts system to the public, including statistical information. I no longer have direct responsibility for these matters. The Courts Service recently presented me with its Annual Report, 2000, which contains, inter alia, comprehensive statistical information on family law matters. The annual report is available in the Oireachtas Library.