Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cé nach n-aontaíom i gcónaí leis an Aire i dtaobh cúrsaí polaitíochta, cathfidh mé a admháil go bhfuil sé mar cheann de na hAirí is mó oibre. We do not necessarily always agree on policy issues, but I commend the Minister for his work rate, as he has been one of the busiest Ministers and I hope he has a good break over the summer.

The Thirty-third Amendment of the Constitution (Court of Appeal) Bill is before us and we in Sinn Féin are also supporting it. As we know, it provides for the establishment of a new court of appeal, with a referendum required to make the necessary constitutional provision for its establishment. If the referendum is carried, the new court will hear appeals from the High Court, while the Supreme Court will hear cases on appeal from the court of appeal and, in exceptional circumstances, the High Court. This reform will bring about a major change in the courts system. I concur with much of what has been said by colleagues about the backlogs in the courts system. This provision will ease the four year backlog of cases in the Supreme Court which in future will only take appeals on constitutional issues or cases of major importance. We support the legislation and the proposition that the question be put to the people.

I take the opportunity to speak briefly on the issue of judicial appointments. As the Minister knows, Sinn Féin launched the Reform of Judicial Appointments Procedures Bill 2013early this year. It is part of our campaign to end the political cronyism embedded in Irish society. When launching the Bill, we did so in the hope that it would put an end to the system of political appointees being made judges. The practice of the Government appointing senior judges must end if the public is to have any faith in a Judiciary free from political or other bias. This Fine Gael and Labour Party Government promised to be a reforming one and put an end to the "jobs for the boys" culture, but looking at the judicial appointments made so far, it is clear that many political cronies have been given jobs.

It is important to welcome the creation of a new court where proceedings take place within a reasonable time as an inefficient court system is costly. As runaway legal costs hamper even small businesses, I welcome the initiative to end this. I offer my support to the Bill and ask the Minister to take on board some of the concerns I have highlighted. I concur with the sentiment expressed by the Minister that justice delayed is justice denied and cannot let the opportunity pass without referring to an Adjournment matter on direct provision that I tabled for discussion last week and was taken on the Minister's behalf. In that instance justice has been delayed and denied. The figures we received last week indicated that 1,849 people in the direct provision system had been waiting for over five years for a resolution of their cases. I agree that part of the delay is caused by the fact that people in that position take court cases to clarify the position or challenge rulings. That system is inappropriate and requires reform, as we are denying people the justice they deserve.

As I indicated on the Order of Business, I am dismayed by the Minister's statement yesterday on Bethany Home. We are disappointed with the treatment of the Magdalen survivors, as well those who suffered as a result of symphysiotomy. In these cases we have also seen justice being delayed and denied and I hope that when the Minister returns reinvigorated after the summer break, he will try to deal with these issues as quickly as possible. I will raise them, in particular the issue of direct provision, as many times as possible. It has been stated not just by me but also by the Ombudsman and Mrs. Justice Catherine McGuinness that we have a scandal on our hands that is in the same league as that involving the Magdalen survivors, Bethany Home and those affected by symphysiotomy and a future Taoiseach will have to make a public apology if we do not act very quickly to effect change.

I note that the Minister, in making statements when he was in opposition, hoped to implement a new system in order that people would stay no longer than six months in direct provision accommodation. That hope has not been delivered on. I note that the immigration, residency and protection Bill has not been brought forward, but I hope it will be introduced quickly as the Minister has indicated that many of the reforms he is willing to implement in direct provision will form part of it. The people in that system deserve better and should not be kept in it as long as they are. There must be reform.

Sinn Féin supports the Minister on this Bill and thank him for bringing it forward.