Future of finance across justice
Ireland’s justice sector operates where public policy meets daily life. It protects communities, administers courts, supports prisons and rehabilitation, manages immigration, and enables access to justice. Together, these functions uphold the rule of law and public confidence in the State, writes Tony Nugent, Finance Transformation Partner at EY.
These responsibilities sit across the critical organisations including the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, An Garda Síochána, the Courts Service, the Data Protection Commission, and the Irish Prison Service.
They operate amid population growth, rising demand, and complex operational realities. For public sector leaders, the question is larger than how finance records expenditure. It is how finance can provide the evidence and foresight needed to sustain services, optimise how resources are deployed, and account clearly for public money.
This challenge sits at the heart of the sector’s modernisation agenda. Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan TD has identified “building a modern and efficient justice system” as a central priority. Public confidence depends not only on sound policy and legislation, but also on institutions capable of operating effectively, transparently, and sustainably.
Ireland approaches this next phase from a position of strength. It ranked eighth out of 143 countries in the 2025 World Justice Project Rule of Law Index. The European Commission’s 2025 assessment also found that reforms to enhance the independence and quality of Ireland’s justice system were continuing and that companies perceived judicial independence as “very high”.
The sector also has a strong track record of delivering reforms across policing, courts, immigration, victim supports, and digital services. The question is how it can build on that record and equip itself for the demands ahead.
The future of finance is therefore not a back-office conversation. It is about equipping institutions to navigate complexity and deliver high quality services. The next phase of justice reform will depend as much on the quality of information available to leaders as on policy or operational change.
Building a better information base
Ireland has a strong tradition of parliamentary financial accountability. Appropriation Accounts record receipts and payments against amounts authorised by the Oireachtas, complemented by accrual information and supporting notes. Public Financial Procedures provides the wider framework for stewardship of public resources.
Following the OECD’s review of financial reporting in Ireland, the Government began developing a central government accounting framework based on international public sector accounting standards and adapted to Irish circumstances. The first Central Government Accounting Standards took effect from 1 January 2024, with further standards introduced progressively.
Cash control remains central to parliamentary accountability. Accrual reporting complements it by providing a fuller picture of assets, liabilities, provisions, commitments, and service costs over time.
The OECD has identified an international movement towards accrual accounting, driven by transparency and better-informed fiscal decisions. Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom were among the early adopters. Their experience points to a consistent lesson: better information does not replace political judgement or public accountability, but gives leaders a stronger basis on which to exercise both.
The relevance for justice is clear. Its financial landscape encompasses supplier and fee-based payments, grants, payroll interfaces, receipts, estates, technology investment, and specialist arrangements supporting frontline services. Whether responding to prison capacity, court demand, policing investment, or immigration transformation, leaders need reliable information to decide how resources are deployed.
Standardisation must not become an objective in itself. Controls should be consistent, but operating models must recognise legal duties, security, service continuity, and the distinct requirements of policing, prisons, courts, immigration, and departmental functions.
From modern finance to AI readiness
This is where consolidating financial systems matters. Fragmented platforms, chart of accounts, and inconsistent definitions make it harder to compare costs, understand commitments, or develop a coherent view of performance. A connected financial architecture can reduce duplication, strengthen governance, and improve the journey from purchase request to approval, receipt, invoice, and payment.
The Financial Management Shared Services programme, being delivered across the wider public sector, including justice, is an important enabler. Yet the opportunity is larger than any one programme. The prize is a connected financial ecosystem producing trusted, timely information. Across justice, this work extends into reporting, process design, data migration, testing, training, and business readiness.
Better data also creates the conditions for responsible artificial intelligence. AI cannot compensate for inconsistent classifications, incomplete records, or unclear ownership. Consolidated systems, common definitions, and disciplined governance can establish a trusted foundation for analytics, supporting better forecasting, faster reconciliations, payment anomaly detection, more focused reporting, and unlock efficiencies across the sector.
Within justice, these opportunities must of course be pursued with human oversight, security, data protection, auditability, and clear accountability. Finance reform is sometimes viewed as a back office exercise. In reality, it is an investment in the State’s capacity to plan, prioritise, and deliver effectively.
A strategic opportunity
The leadership opportunity is to connect these developments. Accrual reporting broadens the information available to decision-makers. Shared services and modern systems promote consistency. Better-governed data enables stronger analysis and carefully controlled applications of AI. None is an end in itself.
The prize is not simply a new system or reporting framework. It is a stronger financial foundation for justice: one that protects stewardship, supports informed choices, and helps leaders translate finite resources into safer and more sustainable outcomes.
The justice sector in Ireland, with its formidable track record of reform and delivery, is well positioned to fully embrace these opportunities and harness finance, data, and technology in service of the public good.
