Claire Loftus

Claire Loftus said that the problem was particularly acute given the shared border with the North and the pursuit of prosecutions against “dissident subversive activity”.

In her annual report she warned that Brexit had “very serious implications for the prosecution of crime and criminal justice generally in this country”, the Irish Examiner reports.

“Having effective extradition arrangements between this jurisdiction and the UK is extremely important, having regard to the amount of interaction between the two jurisdictions.”

There were 60 European Arrest Warrants (EAWs) issued last year, the majority of them to the UK.

“As of March 31, 2019, the current arrangements, which are very efficient in securing the return of persons wanted for prosecution, will no longer operate,” said Ms Loftus.

“It is therefore crucial that an agreement is reached on an alternative system prior to that date.”

The report also details that there were 13,666 prosecution files received in 2017, compared to 13,172 in 2016; there was no prosecution in 39 per cent of cases, or in relation to 4,494 suspects, mainly because of insufficient evidence.

Ninety-seven requests for reasons not to prosecute in fatality cases were made between October 2008 and November 2015 – 92 were granted.

Following the implementation of the European Victims Directive in November 2015, there were 22 requests for reasons in the remainder of that year, 609 in the following year and 638 in 2017.

Reasons were provided in 577 cases last year and 57 were refused.