NI barristers set date for strike action over pay

More than 200 barristers in Northern Ireland are to strike on 17 November

More than 200 barristers in Northern Ireland are set for a one-day strike across all criminal courts on 17 November, the Bar Council has said.

The action is due to "wholly unreasonable delays" in barristers receiving legal aid payments.

The move follows a ballot of the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), which has about 230 members.

It said that barristers, after completing work, face a wait of up to six months to receive payment.

The day-of-action means that, aside from some agreed exceptions for emergency cases, barristers will not participate in any work related to criminal cases.

'Wholly unsustainable'

A spokesperson for the Bar Council, NI barristers' professional representative body, said the action is "not being taken lightly".

"It is a regrettable but necessary measure to preserve the viability of legal aid as a vital public service that is relied upon by the most vulnerable citizens in our society," they said.

"The Department of Justice's policy of delaying payment for work done means that dedicated and skilled lawyers are having to wait for up to six months for payment after completing their work. This is a wholly unsustainable, unfair, and unreasonable policy."

The organisation said it has been calling on the Department of Justice (DoJ) to address the issue for months.

"The department has, to date, indicated that it intends to continue with this policy of payment delays.

"Indeed, no other jurisdiction across the UK and Ireland has chosen to address Legal Aid budget pressures by financially punishing the lawyers who provide a vital public service," they added.

'No mechanism open'

A DoJ spokesperson said it is "sympathetic to the frustration of the profession", but action is "premature".

"We fully appreciate the challenges faced by the legal profession and agree that the current budget provision is insufficient," they said.

"We have made this point on a number of occasions and continue to have open dialogue with the Bar of Northern Ireland on a wide range of issues, including budgetary pressures."

However, they said, in the current political situation "there is no mechanism open to us to increase the budget".