Independent TD Mattie McGrath said the public should not sleepwalk its way into changing the courts system.

McGrath is trying to encourage people to vote no in next month's referendum on creating a Court of Civil Appeal.

"It's more people telling us it's reform - it's not real reform," he said.

"There's a huge backlog down in the Supreme Court, and all the courts, for that matter. Justice delayed is justice denied. But setting up a court of appeal with two new judges … isn't going to deal with that backlog."

The Government claims the new court is needed to help ease the backlog of cases at the Supreme Court.