Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service, which is independent in exercising its functions, and this includes the provision of information on the courts system.

However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have made enquiries with the Courts Service and they have provided the figures requested by the Deputy which I am including by way of tabular statement below.  

By way of background information I advise that the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014  provides for alternatives to imprisonment for non-payment of fines.  Section 7 provides for the issuing of enforcement notices where fines have not been paid or instalment payment arrangements have not been maintained. Therefore all fines  outstanding / in default imposed since January 2016 must become subject to the section 7 procedure.  Section 7 is essentially a notification procedure specifying a return date for appearance of the fined person before the District Court. The section provides alternative options to imprisonment that are available to the court – imposition of attachment of earnings, debt recovery, community service orders or imprisonment.

The  Courts Service commenced a pilot implementation of the section 7 enforcement process and the first batch of  enforcement notices issued in July 2017 for court return dates in September 2017.  Procedural issues arose in respect of the section 7 process in the course of the Pilot, and notices ceased issuing from the Courts Service in September 2017, pending a review.  Issues arising were addressed by all relevant State Agencies, including the Courts Service and An Garda Siochana, and the Courts Service resumed issuing  enforcement notices in January 2018.  The resumed hearings have commenced with effect from last month, and a strategy is in place with a view to clearing all outstanding hearings during the course of 2019.  I have asked my Department to closely monitor the position with a view to ensuring a comprehensive response to the problem of accumulated unpaid fines.

Report on the number and value of fines outstanding from 2013 – 31 March 2018:

Note: Report is based on fines imposed each year and the amount due or part due up to date.