Crowley blamed lack of resources from the Department of Justice to the equality tribunal and delays in appointing additional equality officers. He added that the tribunal itself had long complained that a backlog of cases had built up and that this has not been tackled, despite promises over the last two years to provide more resources to clear it.

The tribunal has 10 equality officers to deal with hundreds of discrimination claims referred to it each year. The Department of Justice has earmarked Euro2.14m in funding for the tribunal this year - a 10% increase on its funding in 2006.

"The current national agreement, Towards 2016, contained a commitment to review resources and procedures at the tribunal. But nothing has been done, " said Crowley.

The Equality Authority promotes equality and, in some instances, represents individuals taking discrimination claims under the Equal Status Act, which outlaws discrimination in the provision of services, and the Employment Equality Act, which outlaws discrimination in the workplace. The separate Equality Tribunal hears and adjudicates on the claims.

Crowley added that claims taken under the Equal Status Act were held in private, which was important given their sometimes sensitive nature but that the guarantee of anonymity was lost if a ruling was appealed to the Circuit Court. "This is also discouraging people from making claims, particularly in cases involving sexual orientation, " he warned.