Mr. Philip O'Leary:

FLAC is a non-governmental organisation, NGO, and a voluntary body. It does fantastic work. I was involved with it for a long time. It continues to do fantastic work. It is a free service and the centres provide a voluntary advice service throughout the State. The centres are probably more involved in the advice side of things than actually providing services in courts. They certainly have a very strong role as an NGO in challenging the Government and society as to where Ireland should be going. It is an organisation I hold in high esteem. The Legal Aid Board is not a free scheme, which is a big difference. It is a means-tested scheme. It is a statutory body that was set up under the Act. It has a significant annual budget and a large and a very committed staff cohort. I am almost overwhelmed when I travel around the State and meet the staff and see their level of commitment and their contribution to the work towards access to justice.