Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Last week we had an enlightening debate in the House on the issue of crime. While Deputy English, as Minister of State, was in the front bench, I and a number of other Deputies raised an issue regarding the allocation of free legal aid. I asked then if time could be allocated for a debate in the House on what I and a number of Deputies see as abuses relating to the allocation of free legal aid.

I refer specifically to the situation where free legal aid can be allocated to a Member of Dáil Éireann whose salary is in excess of €85,000 per year and it is perceived by the courts that the individual in question does not have means. People up and down the country are outraged by the abuse of a system originally designed to ensure people were allocated representation before our courts when they did not have means and by the idea that people can siphon off part of their income to a political protest movement to avoid being captured by the means test process.

Are there proposals within the Department of Justice and Equality to bring forward amending legislation or other legislative measures to deal with this? Will the Whips agree on this? There was universal agreement in the House that there should be a debate on this and I raised it in the last Dáil in 2014. Some €50 million in taxpayers' money is being spent on free legal aid. If people on salaries of more than €85,000 per annum are going to be allocated aid by the Courts Service, there is an immediate need for amending legislation, some legislative measure such as regulations or policies to ensure this is not allowed.

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