I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this issue. Will the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform clarify, as a matter of urgency, the future of the suburban legal aid centres at Blanchardstown, Finglas and Tallaght following his disclosure that the closure of these centres is being actively considered.
In reply to a parliamentary question I tabled last week seeking assurances on the Minister's commitment to the future of the Blanchardstown legal aid centre at Clonsilla Road, the Minister confessed that the Legal Aid Board "is examining the possible benefits of relocating some or all of its suburban law centres in Dublin to locations in the city centre, to bring them closer to the courts".
It is well known that the Legal Aid Board has had financial problems arising from its decentralisation some time ago from Dublin to the then Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform's home town and constituency base of Cahirciveen in County Kerry. As a consequence of this move, the Legal Aid Board, in effect, has two headquarters, one in Dublin, which its says is needs for access to the courts, and one in Cahirciveen. It now appears that people in areas such as Dublin 15, Finglas and Tallaght may suffer the withdrawal of vital legal aid services to facilitate a Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrats decentralisation stroke which has ended up costing far more than when it was first envisaged.
The legal aid centres in the suburbs are a vital resource for people, particularly for those experiencing marriage breakdown who need legal advice but who have relatively modest means and are on a pension or on social welfare. I call on the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, who makes so many pronouncements on so many issues, to make a clear commitment to continue to provide legal aid services in the Dublin suburbs where people can access them. At a time when the Government appears to have money to waste on all sorts of projects from Punchestown to e-voting, this threat to the only legal aid centre in Dublin 15 is outrageous. I would like the Minister to clarify its future and that of the other centres.