Irish justice spending lowest in Europe as percentage of GDP
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Ireland spends less on the justice system as a percentage of GDP than any other European country, according to new figures.
The European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ), part of the Council of Europe, today released its latest evaluation report on European judicial systems.
The report is based on 2022 data and concerns 44 member states of the Council of Europe, as well as two observer states to CEPEJ, Israel and Morocco.
Ireland’s judicial system had a budget of €335.3 million in 2022, representing €65 per inhabitant, below the CoE median, the report states.
As a percentage of GDP, this is just 0.07 per cent — “the lowest in Europe”, according to the report.
The courts and prosecution services’ budgets are below the CoE median, while the legal aid budget per inhabitant was “among the highest in Europe”, standing at €23.60 and accounting for 35.9 per cent of the overall judicial system budget.
The number of judges in Ireland is well below the CoE media, with just 3.3 judges per 100,000 inhabitants in 2022, compared to the European average of 17.6 — and a very small increase on the 3.1 recorded in 2012.
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