I thank the Minister for coming in. We do not often get the appropriate line Minister so we are grateful for having him here. I raise the issue of civil legal aid and how the system is currently failing survivors of domestic violence. We know that legal aid for victims and survivors of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, DSGBV, is overstretched, under-resourced and not meeting demand. In 2024, the Free Legal Advice Centres's phone lines received a record high number of queries in relation to domestic violence. This is a clear indication of the growing, unmet legal need in this area.

We have heard stark statements about the state of our civil legal aid scheme, which is in crisis and on the brink of collapse due to chronic underfunding and under-resourcing. The civil legal aid scheme is failing to meet that legal need. A core problem is the rigid and out-of-date means testing scheme. The means test is a barrier to accessing legal aid and is, therefore, a barrier to justice for survivors of domestic violence, as is the financial contribution requirement. Domestic violence survivors may need to make repeated applications for legal aid. That is repeated financial contributions, which puts a huge strain on them financially. It is crucial that we understand how financial abuse is often used as a factor in domestic violence cases, further restricting women's ability to access that legal aid. Some women may be deemed ineligible for legal aid because of joint assets, over which in reality they have no control. Access to free legal aid is vital in cases of domestic violence involving financial abuse, as victim-survivors may not have access to their own finances to pay for legal services.

The income threshold for the scheme is woefully out of date, having not been updated since 2006. This greatly reduces the proportion of people who will qualify for legal aid. The threshold needs to be raised urgently to account for inflation. Many people in dire need, including domestic violence survivors, are effectively locked out of our legal aid system, as the threshold is 20 years out of date and does not reflect the cost of living in today's society. Both reports that arose from the independent review of the civil legal aid scheme last year identified the urgent need to raise the threshold and associated allowances, including that the accommodation allowance be deducted from the income assessment, to reflect the rising costs of accommodation. The minority report published under the legal aid review recommended that the income threshold be raised from the current figure of €18,000 to €30,000. Moreover, it called for the complete removal of the means test in cases of domestic violence.

It has been a year since the Minister received the reports from the legal aid review. I ask him to provide an update on the progress to implement those recommendations, particularly pertaining to the raising of the financial eligibility threshold. It is vital that we ensure sufficient staffing of the Legal Aid Board and affiliated solicitors, as well as adequate training of the legal aid solicitors on violence against women. This was a key recommendation from the Council of Europe's group of experts responsible for monitoring Ireland's compliance with the Istanbul Convention on preventing violence against women. I note the very positive work being done under the zero tolerance strategy in regards to legal aid staff completing domestic violence awareness CPD training. That is really important. It is crucial that the training also includes an understanding of economic violence, namely, how perpetrators might be exploiting the lower threshold for assessing legal aid to drag the victim-survivor through endless court cycles of expensive litigation as a means of maintaining control in post-separation abuse cases. There is a lot of research to show that perpetrators use this as a tool time and again.

Is the DSGBV training mandatory for all legal aid lawyers working for the Legal Aid Board? That would be great to hear. What action has been take on the implementation of the actions from the two reviews from last year? The minority report also emphasises the socioeconomic return on investment in legal aid. It adds that the Legal Aid Board must be sufficiently resourced to carry out the transformation envisaged by the review. It also includes that Legal Aid Board solicitors should be paid at the same rates as Civil Service lawyers, in bodies such as the Chief State Solicitor's office. The report further recommended a reorientation of civil legal aid services towards targeted, early and preventative services. It notes that disadvantaged individuals from marginalised communities are particularly vulnerable when it comes to domestic violence.

They need early legal advice and advocacy where they are located in their communities. This particularly relates to people from rural backgrounds.

I thank Senator Stephenson for raising this important issue. As she will be aware, access to justice is an absolutely fundamental corner-stone of our justice system. In order for laws to operate effectively and for people to get the benefit of the laws we enact in the Oireachtas, there has to be a mechanism by which they can seek the administration of justice through our courts. As the Senator recognises, nowhere is this more significant than in cases where victims of domestic violence need the court’s support.

Civil legal aid and advice is provided for qualifying individuals in a range of civil matters. There are two elements to the scheme. One is legal advice and the other is legal representation. As the Senator indicated, eligibility is determined by way of a means test and a merits test. The statutory body responsible for the provision of civil legal aid is the Legal Aid Board, which gives advice and aid to persons of modest means. A range of civil legal issues are covered by the scheme, including domestic violence applications, which I am pleased to say are prioritised by the Legal Aid Board. In addition, the civil legal aid regulations from 2017 provide that no contribution is payable for those who are applying solely for orders under the Domestic Violence Act 2018.

Having a civil legal aid scheme and a Legal Aid Board that is equipped to meet the changing needs of society is critical to ensuring access to justice, particularly for those in need. As the Senator will be aware, the recommendations of the civil legal aid review are currently being examined by my officials. This comprehensive review was the first of its kind since the scheme’s establishment some 46 years ago. Members of the review group included the former Chief Justice, Mr. Frank Clarke, and representatives from the Legal Aid Board, FLAC, the legal profession and academia. As the Senator indicated, I got the review group reports last year, which were published in July 2025. They identify several key areas for reform, including the potential to modify the application for the legal merits test in certain circumstances and to provide access to legal representation, irrespective of means, for victims of domestic violence. I have considered the report and I have decided that I want to seek to implement the majority report. Finance is obviously an issue I have to deal with in terms of having the funds available to implement these reports. I have decided that the report that is most implementable is the majority report.

When it comes to the commencement of recommendations and the implementation of the report, however, I have to go through a budgetary process. I could not just decide to introduce the recommendations, say, this month because I have not got the money available and lined up as a result of the budgetary measures and budgetary agreements. As the Senator will know, a new budgetary process is starting and the budget will be in early October. I have instructed officials that I want to include within the justice provision for budget 2027 funding for the improvement and commencement of the implementation of the majority report. A critical aspect of any implementation will therefore be the careful sequencing of reforms. Many of them would need to work in parallel with other ongoing reforms in the civil justice system. In that context, both my Department and the Legal Aid Board are working closely together to ensure any proposed reforms are developed as part of the annual budgetary estimates process, taking into account the broader implications for Government policy.

The recommendations of the review will also have to be considered alongside the findings from Ireland's first legal needs survey conducted in 2025. While preliminary results of the survey have been released, further analysis is under way, with my Department working closely with the OECD on final outputs. The survey will provide an important insight into the legal needs of people living in the country and will help inform future policy development in this area. I am committed and I want to see the majority report implemented. I want to see the commencement of the implementation of that. I am going to start that in the context of budgetary discussions.

I welcome that the Minister is committed to implementing the majority report. I will ask him about the minority report's recommendation around the threshold that is currently €18,000 for eligibility and that it be moved up to €30,000, given that it has not been increased since 2006. That specific part of the minority report is crucial in regard to the way that coercive control and financial abuse is used in domestic violence situations.

When we talk about access to justice, legal aid is a core component of that but so are stronger protections within the judicial process. What are the Minister's thoughts on the disclosure in regard to the counselling notes piece? I know he was discussing it at the justice committee yesterday. I am concerned that the amendments to section 19A do not go far enough. They do not limit the Garda or the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, from seeking counselling notes. They do not strengthen protections around disclosures and, crucially, survivors are still required to hand over deeply personal counselling notes to legal teams, including the accused and defence teams. I am very concerned that what was put forward does not answer that.

As indicated, my objective is to implement the majority report. I do not have sufficient funding to implement the minority report, to be frank with the Senator. In regard to what I have got to do, if I increased the thresholds, and I hope to do that, it will necessarily result in there being more work for the Legal Aid Board to do. I have to ensure there are sufficient resources within the Legal Aid Board to be able to do that.

As the Senator will be aware, a range of supports are available for people experiencing domestic abuse. We discussed some of them yesterday at committee; I will come back to that presently. It is important to try to ensure there is greater access for people to the civil legal aid system, particularly for those who are victims of domestic abuse.

In regard to what the Senator said about counselling notes, I will have an opportunity in the Seanad when the miscellaneous provisions Bill comes here. We had a very good discussion on it yesterday on Committee Stage. I am very satisfied that the measures I introduced and got through Committee Stage yesterday will significantly strengthen the current situation. The current situation is unacceptable. I am putting in place a statutory presumption that there will be non-disclosure of counselling notes but, as the Senator will obviously be aware, they cannot be completely banned. That is the clear advice that I and the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre have received. We have got to get a balancing act, and the balancing act I will be discussing here in the Seanad when the Bill comes to it is the suitable one.