Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 February 2026
88. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to provide an update on the changes to judicial reviews mentioned in the Accelerating Infrastructure Action Plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10741/26]
View answerPillar 1 of the Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan commits to a series of legal reforms, including reforms to the judicial review process. It makes this commitment as the one of the core conclusions of the Report is that existing incentives in the legal system have driven an increasing number of judicial reviews impacting court operations and the wider public good. By increasing the time taken for each case to be dealt with, it also impedes access to justice.
Pillar 1 is comprised of seven actions on legal reform, of which two, actions 1 and 7, are directly relevant to reform of the judicial review system.
Action 1 comprises a series of short to medium actions to the judicial review system. My Department is currently engaged in this examination of potential reforms and will be engaging with the relevant Departments on further reform over 2026 in line with the commitments in the report.
Action 7 commits the Government to the development of a Civil Reform Bill that will place judicial reviews on a statutory basis. This action is led by the Department of Justice. Draft heads for the Civil Reform Bill have been agreed by Government and published. The proposed Bill will reform judicial review by placing a public interest test at the centre of the process to ensure balance and protection of common good, as well as seek to introduce a new production regime that will be more effective, efficient and lead to lower costs.
