International Protection Bill 2026: Committee Stage
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-18
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Mark Ward (SF), Dublin Mid-West

This amendment seeks to provide a clear definition of "legal counselling". We were asked many questions about legal counselling during the justice committee's hearings on this legislation, such as how it is to be defined, what it means and who will provide it. There will be a lack of clarity if legal counsel is provided by non-legal professionals. Is it to be individual counselling? Is it to be group counselling? Is group counselling even ethical under professional rules?
Before I was elected here in 2019, I worked as an addiction counsellor. I could call myself a behavioural therapist. There were no regulations in relation to that under CORU at the time. Since I became a Member, the regulation and registration of counselling by CORU still has not happened. Will the term "legal counselling" have to be regulated by CORU? As I mentioned, counsellors and psychotherapists are still not regulated. This process began in 2018. It was in the programme for Government in 2020. It still has not happened.
For this new term, "legal counsellors", will CORU also be required to regulate this or is it something that may happen down the line when all of a sudden we realise that there are unintended consequences of this new term and that this new form of counselling will have to be regulated by an outside branch?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-18/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:39+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-18