Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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578. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the length of time it is taking to deal with traffic offences in district courts in Dublin; if there are undue delays in such cases being heard due to the Covid-19 emergency period restriction; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39641/20]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts, including the provision of accommodation for court sittings, is the responsibility of the Courts Service, which is independent in exercising its functions.

However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have had enquiries made and the Courts Service have advised me that the restrictions imposed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic have had the effect of curtailing the numbers of people that can safely attend indoor venues including Courthouses, where new arrangements have had to be put in place.

Since the start of the pandemic, priority has been given to areas of court business such as domestic violence applications, cases involving custody matters and criminal jury trials. Because traffic summons lists are typically long and require the attendance of large numbers of people and their lawyers, a different approach was required. This involved staggering lists and finding dates and times in court lists where numbers attending other courts in courthouses were low, so as to preserve social distancing.

The pandemic led to a cessation of scheduling summonses by the Courts Service between March and the end of July. When scheduling restarted, a backlog of applications for summonses had built up. The Courts Service is working with An Garda Síochána to implement a plan to clear this backlog over the coming months and have these matters before the Courts at the earliest possible opportunity.