Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On head 29 and the expert witness procedure, I agree with what the Bar Council has said about the way it is currently worded. I also think that the practical experience of many practitioners has been extraordinarily frustrating because when you are dealing with a body that is not in the court, as opposed to a judicial figure who has a much greater understanding of how a trial runs and what might be required, there is an element of box ticking that can be very frustrating when you are trying to get sanction for an expert witness. There is an element, with the greatest respect to the Civil Service, which has served this country incredibly well, of Civil Service shut down and an approach of "we will not go beyond this point" even though it might only be a small amount of money to secure, for example, often an expert from abroad because they are not available in this country. I would be very wary of what is in head 29 and making sure that it is not inflexible and more frustrating than it currently is.