Backlogs in the courts service as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic are hampering the administration of justice.
This is according to former Cavan/Monaghan district court judge, Sean McBride who was speaking on the Joe Finnegan Show this morning.
Mr McBride says the pandemic had a "huge and disastrous" effect on the entire population as well as on services.
He added that many services have collapsed while others - including the Courts Service - have come under "huge strain".
The former judge says Ireland has less judges per head of population than those of a number of European countries.
Reform across the board is needed, he added, to ensure the "effective" administration of justice in Ireland.
"Most of the people who fall on the wrong side of the law in the district court - not all, but most of them - come from very poor backgrounds," Mr McBride continued.
"They come from poverty, depravation, are often the victim of drug trafficking, and addicted to drugs.
"I'm not excusing what they do but they have a lot of social issues.
"You don't tend to have that scenario in what one would describe as the higher socio-economic sectors of society."
