The Ulster Unionist Party’s Justice spokesperson Tom Elliott MLA has expressed his concern at proposals announced today by the Justice Minister to close Courthouses in Lisburn, Ards, Ballymena, Limavady, Armagh, Magherafelt, Strabane and Enniskillen.
Mr Elliott said:
"These proposals are deeply worrying and I am urgently seeking a meeting with the Justice Minister.
“We already have a justice system that is renowned for delays and backlog, with some cases taking many months if not even years to come to trial.
“One can only imagine the impact which closing eight more courthouses will have on speeding up the justice process.
“If these proposals are accepted the County of Fermanagh will be left without a single Courthouse.
“There is no doubt that this closure decision is a direct consequence of recent ill-thought out budgets and rather than save money, I believe that the cost in terms of additional delays and backlogs, plus the limiting of many people’s access to justice will far outweigh any benefits.”