Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald TD has called on the Minister for Justice to step in and ensure the necessary funding is released to the legal teams of the Stardust families so that they can begin the work of preparing for the inquest.

She has described the delay in funding provision as ‘astonishing and unacceptable.’

Teachta McDonald said:

“The failure of the Department of Justice to provide the required funding means that the families legal teams cannot begin the work of preparing for the inquest. This means the inquest itself has stalled. This is not acceptable. The Stardust families have already waited forty long and heartbreaking years for justice.

“This problem didn’t come out of the blue. The Department of Justice was forewarned that the funding model they had chosen for the families legal teams was unworkable given the scale of the inquest. The Department ignored these warnings. Frankly, it is astonishing that it has come to this point. Instead of providing a common-sense solution, the Department of Justice has sat on its hands and stone-walled the families. 

“The Department must immediately end its dithering and delay. The government and the Minister for Justice must step-in directly and immediately to ensure that funding issues are resolved and that any further delays are avoided.”