The Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan, has said he rejects any assertion that anybody has a veto over the appointment of judges.
He said he was very keen that all judicial vacancies would be filled and that it was against the administration of justice to have gaps in the system.
He said as Minister for Justice he was conscious of the need to ensure that the appointments proceed.
The Minister was speaking after receiving the 2017 annual report of the Courts service.
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The report shows that the Court of Appeal is receiving more appeals than it can hear and currently has a waiting time of 20 months before civil appeals can proceed.
The Minister said he intended to address vacancies in the Court of Appeal in the autumn. He said he knew how important an excellent courts system was.
The Minister said 16 judges were appointed in 2017 and so far this year, 15 judges had been appointed.
Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan receiving the court service report. Re judicial appointments he says 15 judges were appointed last year, so far this year, 16 have been appointed. pic.twitter.com/d0LgYqYIcf
— Orla O'Donnell (@Orlaodo) July 17, 2018
Mr Flanagan said the Judicial Appointments Bill, currently going through the Seanad, was "imperfect" at its completion in the Dáil.
He described it as "not yet the final article". He said there were more than 112 amendments before the Seanad and he would be considering all of them in full.
He said he welcomed engagement in particular with senators Ivana Bacik and Michael McDowell who had long expertise in the courts system.
He said it was his intention that the bill would be enacted by the end of the year.
The Minister said this bill and the Judicial Council Bill, which was also moving through the Oireachtas would underpin public confidence in the judiciary.
