The increase in the suicide rate has led to a growing workload for coroners, and in the expenses paid for inquests and post-mortems in Co Kerry.
A total of €140,000 has been set aside this year in the annual budget for Co Kerry's two coroners. They are Dr Denis F O'Donovan in south Kerry, and solicitor Ms Helen Lucey in the north of the county.
The amount also includes the fees and expenses paid by the council for attendance and the costs of pathologists.
Kerry County Council's director of finance, Mr John O'Connor, said yesterday the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform controlled regulations with regard to coroners and inquests. Fees were prescribed for most of the activities by that Department.
However, he said, county councils paid for coroners, post-mortems and attendees, as well as pathologists' costs. The workload and the costs had grown significantly with the increase in suicides in recent years.
In 2001 some £95,000 had been set aside in Co Kerry for three coroners and the expenses associated with inquests and post mortems. This had increased to €132,000 in 2002.
In 2002 in Co Kerry there were 22 inquests, 117 post-mortems, including hospital post-mortems, and 59 deaths reported to the Garda.
There have been up to 20 deaths by suicide in Kerry in recent years. Most of these are male, according to the Central Statistics Office.
The figure dropped to 10 in 2002.