Tags: Cork, Ireland, legal aid, Mick Barry, politics, waiting lists

SOCIALIST Party councillor Mick Barry this morning criticised Government cutbacks for the fact that waiting lists for free legal aid have doubled to 2,200 persons in the space of just two years.

There are currently 300 applicants who have been waiting for seven months to avail of the service at Cork city’s South Mall offices.

This is despite the fact that a 2005 High Court ruling stated that no one should be forced to wait more than 4 months to secure access to a solicitor or a barrister at the Legal Aid Board.

Cllr Barry said this morning, “The principle behind free legal aid is very important:  access to legal services and representation should not just be for those who can afford it. This important principle is, however being undermined by Government cutbacks in general and the public service recruitment embargo in particular.

“This embargo should be ended and both waiting lists and waiting times for these vital services slashed quickly.”