Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Yes, there has been an extra workload. I will break it up into two parts. We talked about the complex financial cases in recent years. There have been high-profile cases and less high-profile ones. As a result of the appointment of extra judges to the Central Criminal Court, which went from three to four in the past few years to up to six, rape cases are being taken more quickly, which is a good thing. Murder cases are also being taken more quickly as a result of the extra resources. The workload is increasing. There seem to be more efficiencies as a result of the extra judges. In addition, the office has been streamlined. It used to be at two separate venues so there is a focus on that. There were seven extra staff sanctioned in 2017, which was reflective of the extra workload.