An Cathaoirleach: Apologies have been received from Deputy Matt Shanahan and Senators Malachai O'Hara and Mary Seery-Kearney.

Parliamentary privilege is considered to apply to the utterances of members participating online in a committee meeting when their participation is from within the parliamentary precincts. There can be no assurances with regard to participation online from outside the parliamentary precincts, and members should be mindful of this when they are contributing.

I welcome all our witnesses before the committee today. This committee meeting is part of the module on the health-led approach. We are interested to hear the witnesses' statements. From the Courts Service we have Ms Nina Brennan, assistant secretary and head of Circuit and District Court operations; Ms Fiona Wright, principal officer, head of Dublin combined court office, Dublin drugs treatment court; and Ms Maeve Foley, assistant principal officer, drug treatment court co-ordinator, Dublin drugs treatment court. Also in attendance is Mr. Tony Duffin, CEO of Ana Liffey Drug Project. The witnesses are all very welcome.

I invite Ms Nina Brennan to give her opening statement.

Ms Nina Brennan: I thank the committee for the invitation to meet this morning to discuss the drug treatment court in Dublin. I am the recently appointed – last week, in fact - head of Circuit and District Court operations for the Courts Service. I am joined by my colleagues, Ms Fiona Wright, principal officer and head of the Dublin combined court office, and Ms Maeve Foley, drug treatment court co-ordinator.

The Courts Service is responsible for the management and administration of the courts. As members will be aware, the administration of justice is a matter for the Judiciary and, in accordance with the constitutional independence of the Judiciary and the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, it is outside the scope of the functions of the Courts Service. Separately, the Judicial Council is an independent body that was established in December 2019 and oversees the education and training of the Judiciary. Committee members will appreciate, therefore, that in my discussions and those of my colleagues before the committee today, we are precluded from commenting on any matter relating to the exercise by a judge of his or her judicial functions or any matter relating to the exercise of quasi-judicial functions by an officer of the court or matters relating to the training of judges. I am also, of course, precluded from commenting on matters of Government policy.

I will share some insights into the drug treatment court, DTC, and its impactful role within our criminal justice system. The justice sector is increasingly recognising that traditional punitive measures are ineffective for individuals struggling with substance abuse. Instead, a more trauma-informed, supportive approach, like the drug treatment court, aims to address their needs and encourage rehabilitation. This alternative framework emphasises that engagement with the criminal justice system can provide pathways to recovery, education and health services, fostering hope for individuals and their families.

Since its launch as a pilot program in 2001, the drug treatment court has shown us that addressing drivers of criminal behaviour, such as substance abuse, can lead to transformative change. What we see in the drug treatment court is not just an individual facing charges but rather a complex story of struggle in which the individual has had many challenges in his or her life, which has led to arrest and him or her being brought before the courts. The support and guidance provided encourages participants to write a new chapter in their lives...

[Click this link to read the full debate on the Oireachtas website]

Click this link to access the Video of Thu, 10 Oct 2024,  which starts at about 20 minutes (and the committee is suspended around 2.14 hours).