Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)

I assure Deputy O'Reilly that our Department is committed to driving the modernisation of the Coroner Service in Ireland, including Dublin, where she outlined the issues many families are experiencing, including her own. The Department has received approval from the Government to draft the general scheme of a Bill to significantly reform the Coroner Service in order to increase efficiencies and minimise the impact of the death investigation process on bereaved people and their families. The heads of the Bill, which will be brought to the Government before the end of the year, will aim to address all aspects of the Coroner Service, including the establishment of an independent office of the chief coroner, who will be responsible for setting standards, providing guidance and overseeing the activities of full-time salaried coroners modelled in line with best practice internationally.

Other proposals include reform of the current approach to the provision of coroner-directed autopsies to ensure that families across Ireland have equal access to pathology services and do not experience unnecessary delays. The Coroners (Amendment) Act 2024, which was signed into law in February of last year, makes provision for the assignment and appointment of temporary coroners where workload demands warrant such an assignment. This ensures that there will be adequate coronial provision in all districts pending the reform of the service to which I alluded earlier. I hope that helps.

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