By Mickey Ferry
It would be a 'crass irresponsibility' if the Northern Ireland Office were to close Strabane Courthouse. That claim has been levelled by one leading solicitor amid plans to slash opening hours at Strabane Courthouse.
Several local legal representatives gathered at the courthouse last week to protest plans to only open the facility on days when the court is in session.
The meeting was part of a 12 week consultation on plans to reduce opening hours at courthouses in Strabane, Bangor, Larne, Limavady and Magherafelt.
First to challenge the proposal was solicitor Canice McManus, who argued that any reduction in opening hours would only serve to inconvenience the public.
"No-one can seriously say that this is proposal to close on non-sitting days is user-orientated. At the end of the day the public don't like courthouses.
"If this court is to be closed, it raises the issue of public transport for people who possibly can't afford to travel to Omagh or Dungannon. For many it will be a very problematic situation and will make the whole court experience even more unfriendly.
"The Strabane area has developed in the last eight years and is a much larger postal district than it once was and yet we're closing courts. I don't see the point in any form of closure when it's obvious that things are expanding rapidly here," Mr McManus said.
Solicitor Sharon McBride said, "A lot of Strabane people in the past have had to travel to Omagh and Dungannon for civil cases.
"Quite often their cases could not be heard because the court lists were too big. Yet there would be a courthouse down here in Strabane sitting empty.
"That was the first step, many of us believe, in a continuing trend over the past ten years that suggests closure.
"Given that people have had to travel to courthouses that could not facilitate them, it would be my opinion that rather than closing the court on certain days the Court Service should be taking the pressure off Omagh and Dungannon and actually increasing ways in which Strabane Courthouse can operate."
Asked by Solicitor Michael Scally if this was the first step towards total closure, Head of Court Operations Jacqui Durkan said it was impossible to pre-empt what will happen further down the line.
"I don't think anyone can give that assurance. I don't think any of us can predict what will happen in the future but if there is any intention to close Strabane Courthouse permanently then it will be subject to a full public consultation.
"The fact is we're keeping staff on here permanently while so few people are coming in to use the court facility on non-court days.
"What we have found is that people want to conduct their business more often over the phone, via email or use the pay centre in Derry to pay a fine. There are options open to people now that weren't available in the past and we have found that people are using these services."
Echoing Mr Scally's concerns, Canice McManus added, "This court is for the public. That's the reality. Closing a court in such a large area shows a crass irresponsibilty. There are many people disconnected from the main lines of public transport and I just don't understand how an area which is expanding should be limited like this," he said.
