The Gazette 1988

SEPTEMBER 1 9 88

GAZETTE

VIEWPOINT (Contd. from page 195). difficult for Counsel in particular to take on cases on a speculative basis. It wo u ld be e x t r eme ly unfortunate if in wh at many see as a questionable surrender to the Insurance lobby the effect will be to reduce the chances of persons of mo d e st me a ns w h o have suffered injury of obtaining the services of the leading members of the Bar. • Privatise the Land Registry? Well perhaps not quite. There is however a strong case to be made for converting it into a Public Cor- poration on the lines of Telecom Eireann or An Post. In recent years the Land Registry has been seen as a revenue earning activity w i t h in the Public Service — the surplus produced by the Land Registry is be i ng s i p h o n ed o f f i n to t he Exchequer. Runn i ng t he Land Registry at a profit is not of course objectionable in itself so long as the Registry is seen to be providing a satisfactory service to the public. Unfortunately, as the Manager of the Registry recently advised the So c i e t y, t he Pub l ic Se r v i ce embargo on staff recruitment is still being applied to the Registry. The result is a decline in the level of service to the public. The significant progress made in the 1970s and early 1980s w i t h regionalisation, the production of file plans and the introduction of computerisation is not being main- tained. Twenty-one years after the Registration of Title Act was brought into force providing for a gradual extension of compulsory registration no areas have been added to the original three counties n ame d. The de l a ys in f i r st registration in these counties and other areas suggest t hat there can be no likelihood of any significant e x t e n s i on of c omp u l s o ry registration in t he foreseeable future. If there is to be a comprehensive system of registration of title as opposed to registration of deeds, it is essential that it is kept up to date and that it functions efficiently. Transactions must be registered speedily so that the Register as nearly as possible reflects the actual ownership and occupation and identity of the units of property.

If our Register is not up to date, all kinds of dealings w i t h property, d ome s t i c, c omme r c i al or ag r i c u l t u r al are unne c e s s a r i ly slowed d own w i th consequent additional cost to all concerned. The Land Registry is entitled to have adequate staff to perform its proper function and should need no State subsidy. It can, as it has shown, collect adequate revenue f r om its customers. It must be particularly frustrating for the Land Registry staff who have already shown by their introduction of computerisation to the Registry that they are interested in providing a modern service to the public, that they are prevented from doing so by the dead hand of the public service embargo. The Land Registry is not one of the areas in wh i ch the public service embargo should operate, t he s i mp l e st s o l u t i on to t he problem is almost certainly to extract the Land Registry from the public service and establish it as an independent public Co r p o r a t i o n .•

WARNING

Practitioners should please note Practice Notes in relation to Income Tax Self Assessment and Tax Amnesty enclosed with this Gazette.

Brian Bohan, Chairman, Taxation Committee.

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