Mark Wall (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State into the House for this important Bill, which the Labour Party very much welcomes. We are told the sole purpose of the Courts Bill 2023 is to provide for the necessary legislative amendments to increase by 24 the number of judges in the District Court, Circuit Court, High Court and the Court of Appeal. That is very much welcome. We are told the Government proposal for this increase in judicial numbers arises from recommendations of the report of the judicial planning working group. I will take the opportunity to thank its chair, Brigid McManus, for her considerable work in preparing this report which was received by the Government in January 2023.

In its report, the judicial planning working group recognised that current judicial numbers cannot provide timely access to justice given population growth; new and growing areas of law and increasing complexity of issues raised by the courts. The group noticed the unsatisfactory waiting times in most of our courts which have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. The group also recognised that an effective court system that provides timely access to justice is of central importance to society, the economy, individuals and families. In line with the recommendations of the report, the Government is proposing the allocation of additional resources should be phased. The first phase, which is the subject of the Courts Bill 2023 is for a total of 24 additional judges with the District Court and Circuit Court to have eight judges; the High Court to have six judges and the Court of Appeal to have two judges. The statutory limit on the number of ordinary judges of the Circuit Court has only recently been increased by three. Accordingly, a further increase of five ordinary judges of the Circuit Court is now proposed under the Courts Bill 2023.

The Minister of State will be aware I have previously raised delays with access to family courts in particular. I raised it with the Minister of State when he was last in this Chamber. Increasing the number of available judges can only have a very positive effect on the worries that many families raised with me around such delays. The issue is constantly raised with me through clinics and in correspondence and needs to be addressed. I welcome the fact that the Minister of State is increasing the number of judges and I hope it will appease many of the people I deal with and the concerns they raise with me.

I support, as almost every Member has, the comments on the retirement age of 70 for judges. I agree with Senator Gavan that this must be looked at throughout the whole spectrum of employment. The Labour Party has made proposals on this and is in active discussions on the subject, as are other political parties. I will raise the issue of free legal aid centres. I have raised it previously with the Minister of State and ask for his continued support. It is a worry for me when I hear colleagues raise issues with regard to the number of people available to take on these cases. We need to address this issue and I am sure the Minister of State will take that out of this conversation with us today. He has informed us this is a short Bill, which has been initiated in the Oireachtas with a view to prioritising legislative consideration in order for the process leading to the appointment of new judges to be done in a timely manner.

We welcome this Bill. The Government in this instance is reacting positively to an urgent need that exists in the courts system and is providing us with more judges, who are badly needed. We look forward to progressing this Bill through the Houses and supporting its passage.