Newly released historical documents have revealed that senior judges expressed significant concerns two decades ago that accommodating the Irish language in Northern Ireland's courtrooms had the potential to damage public trust in the justice system.
Judiciary's Stark Warning on Costs and Fairness
According to declassified files from 2004, the Council of the County Court Judges issued a stark warning during a consultation on the issue. The consultation was part of a review initiated by the Northern Ireland Courts Service to consider the application of the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages.
The judges acknowledged their duty to ensure individuals understand proceedings they are involved in. However, they argued that prioritising Irish could set a challenging precedent. They pointed to growing communities, such as Chinese and Portuguese speakers in certain areas, whose members might have greater difficulty with English.
The council's response stressed that funds could be more urgently needed for translation services for these groups, where language use was a necessity rather than a choice. They warned that the financial burden of providing translation and the inevitable delays to court cases would be "enormous".
Police Fears Over Abuse and Delays
The confidential file also includes a submission from a senior police officer of the time, Assistant Chief Constable Judith Gillespie. She raised practical policing concerns, noting that even in an Irish-language court, translators would be needed to assist non-Irish speaking court officials and police officers.
Ms Gillespie stated she feared the process would be slowed down significantly and expressed concern that the option to choose a language, where English presented no barrier to a fair trial, "would be open to abuse."
Balancing Rights with Practical Administration
In their concluding remarks, the judges emphasised the need to balance rights with the practical delivery of justice. They opined that where a person understands English, as they noted the vast majority of Irish speakers would, their right to a fair trial is not compromised by proceedings being conducted in English.
The judicial council concluded that the impact of such demands risked adversely affecting the provision of a legal process that is both fair and timely. This, they cautioned, carried the serious potential to undermine the confidence of the entire public, from every community, in the administration of justice.
The proposals to allow the use of Irish in courts eventually formed part of the New Decade, New Approach agreement that restored devolved government at Stormont in January 2020. Earlier this year, Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn formally repealed a 1737 penal law that had made it a criminal offence to use any language other than English in court in the region.
