Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 49: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform the reason for the decision to withdraw the €35 per day paid to volunteers of the court support service; his plans for the future of the service in view of the support and assistance the service has been providing to victims and witnesses appearing in courts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35389/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I should say at the outset that my Department has not withdrawn funding from the organisation which provides services to victims of crime in respect of court support services. I understand that since its inception in 2005 the Commission for the Support of Victims of Crime has provided grant assistance to the Court Support Services Organisation. The Commission continues to fund the Court Support Services in 2010. The Commission is an independent body operating under the aegis of my Department.

I am advised that the Commission has expended considerable time and energy over a number of years in relation to significant governance issues in the Court Support Services. Since June, 2009 the board of the Court Support Services has actively worked to resolve these issues. An independent report on developing effective governance and management for the Court Support Services in summer, 2010 found the governance structures inadequate and recommended that a range of measures needed to be implemented.

In relation to the subject matter of the current question, I am advised that the Board of the Court Support Services is replacing a system of unvouched expenses for volunteers with a system supported by receipts. The independent report mentioned above recommended such a system. I understand that the Board of the Court Support Services is actively seeking to implement all of the recommendations of the independent report, so that the Court Support Services can become a sustainable organisation with the ability to deliver top class services to victims of crime. The Board is about to recruit a new manager for the service.

Existing nationwide court accompaniment services for victims of domestic violence, rape and sexual assault and Dublin-based services for those under eighteen years of age continue to operate at full capacity. A court accompaniment service in the Central Criminal Court is being provided this week by the Court Support Services and other highly experienced volunteers. It is my considered view that all of the organisations funded by the Commission for the Support of Victims of Crime must aim to achieve the highest standard of service for victims of crime.