Press release
Minister McEntee secures government approval to draft Coroners Amendment Bill 2023
Published on
Last updated on
Published on
Last updated on
The Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has today secured government approval to draft the Coroners Amendment Bill 2023.
The Bill will:
a) ensure that an appropriate number of Coroners can operate in the Dublin District; and
b) ensure that additional temporary Coroners can be appointed to all Coroners districts, if required.
Minister McEntee said:
“The number of cases being handled by the Dublin District Coroner’s Office has increased significantly in recent years for a number of reasons. While the District has traditionally operated with 1 Coroner and 1 Deputy Coroner, an additional 2 Coroners were appointed in mid-2021 under temporary provisions associated with the circumstances of COVID-19.
"My department is currently increasing resources to support the work of Coroners in the Dublin district. The government is acutely aware of the impact that delays in hearing inquests has on bereaved families and loved ones.
"The proposed Coroners (Amendment) Bill will ensure that an appropriate number of Coroners can be recruited to continue to operate in the Dublin District and ensure that additional temporary Coroners can be appointed to the Dublin District and other districts if required.
"The Bill must be considered against the backdrop of a much more comprehensive reform of the Coroner’s system. Pending reform of the Coroner’s system a number of interim legislative measures are needed to ensure the seamless continuance of Coroner operations. The Coroners (Amendment) Act 2023 will provide for the measures anticipated.
"Last week I launched a public consultation on gov.ie/justice to seek views, observations and proposals on how the Coroner Service might be reformed into the future. Understanding the experience of those who have interacted with the coronial system is critical in informing any changes that need to be made, and I would urge as many people as possible to take part.”
The Coroner Service comprises of a network of coroners located in districts throughout the country. Coroners are independent quasi-judicial office holders whose function is to investigate sudden and unexplained, violent and unnatural deaths. The death investigation process may involve a post-mortem examination (PME), in order to establish the cause of death, as well as an inquest in certain instances.
It has been broadly accepted that the Coroners Act 1962 requires significant change as illustrated by a number of reports dating back to 2000. To this end, a public consultation process is currently underway in relation to the reform of Coroner’s system. The Minister would urge as many people as possible to respond to the public consultation which is available at: Coroner Reform Consultation.
The Department of Justice provides administrative support (premises, staffing, ICT and HR services) to the Dublin district Coroner since 2018.
The numbers of deaths reported to the Dublin Coroner doubled between 2018 and 2022 and this has resulted in a gradual build-up of cases in the District. While the impact of COVID-19 on the workload of the Dublin District Coroner’s Office is currently being evaluated, the current backlog of cases has resulted in typical waiting times of 2 years for an inquest to be heard, however this can be longer depending on the complexity of each individual case.
While the District has traditionally operated with 1 Coroner and 1 Deputy Coroner, an additional 2 Coroners were appointed in mid-2021 under temporary provisions associated with the circumstances of COVID-19.