Gary Gannon: “Thousands of cases have already been adjourned, people facing serious charges are unable to get legal advice and…”

It is a shoddy and, ultimately, very damaging way to do business because the courts are now in chaos.

Those delays have implications, very serious ones, for victims of crime.

This is a mess of the minister's making. He must reverse these changes immediately and do what he should have done from the outset – sit down with the Law Society and meaningfully engage with them.

The decision taken by the Minister for Justice, a unilateral decision, has resulted in our system of criminal legal aid and justice effectively grinding to a halt.