A CHIEF executive for the proposed Courts Service should be appointed before the start of the next legal year in October, according to the Bar Council chairman, Mr James Nugent SC.
The job carries an annual salary of £75,047.
Mr Nugent said the Government's acceptance of the main recommendation of the Courts Commission was "the most significant step in 70 years of independence." He said the Minister for Justice, Mrs Owen, could take credit for doing more to improve the courts system than any of her predecessors.
"There is absolutely no reason now why it shouldn't be put on the fast track and implemented." He said the Bar Council was pressing for urgent implementation of the proposal.
"Anything that the council can do to assist in that will be done, whether at commission level or at any other level." The present situation is chaotic.
Mr Nugent is one of the 12 members of the commission appointed by Mrs Owen in November.
He said he believed the Courts Service could be set up "on existing resources", as most of the personnel were already in place.
"It's important that we not just accept the report and put it on the shelf and admire it. The principle is now agreed. We must go ahead and implement it."
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