Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to address this issue. I am disappointed the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Flanagan, is not in the Chamber to take the Topical Issue matter. Perhaps there is a reason for that. I will address it with the Minister of State, Deputy Stanton, who is designated in the Minister's place.

There is a very frustrating situation currently where community groups have been awarded grants for community CCTV but they are not in a position to draw down the grants. Mullaghmore, Woodenbridge and Mountmellick community alerts in Laois are all shackled at the moment. Those groups have raised thousands of euro towards a CCTV scheme through voluntary efforts but they are in a situation where they cannot put their plans into action because of a dispute over who is the data controller. I have raised the issue previously in the Chamber, and I raised it at the Laois local joint policing committee, JPC, of which I am a member. The policing committee asked me to raise the issue with the Minister, and I have spoken to him about it. I am trying to get greater clarity on it but we do not seem to be getting any closer to a solution. We need to push on to solve it and crack this nut.

I raised the matter with the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Flanagan, on September 25 and he told me he was anxious to sit down with the remaining handful of local authorities with a view to dealing with the issue. At that stage 26 out of 31 local authorities had agreed to be data controllers. Some people in local government believe the role should be taken on by the Garda, and I will return to this point shortly, but information that has since come to light shows that the responsibility is with the local authorities.

I raised the issue again in the Chamber with the Minister for Justice and Equality on 29 November during questions to the Minister. The Minister replied with greater clarity and he set it out very clearly that 28 out of 31 local authorities across the State had taken on the job of data controller for local CCTV schemes. Three local authorities, however, are refusing, including Laois County Council. The Minister also stated that "the Data Protection Commissioner does not have any concerns about the legislative basis for CCTV." The Data Protection Commissioner is happy with it. The Minister also stated the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner was currently conducting an audit of the practice, operation and governance of CCTV, that he expected findings from this process to be of assistance to all concerned and, in particular, to local authorities and that his Department was engaging on an ongoing basis with the Local Government Management Agency and the County and City Management Association. In reply to another question the Minister clearly stated that "the legal requirement for local authorities to act as data controller for the purpose of community CCTV schemes has been in place since 2006." That is in black and white. It is useful that the Minister nailed that information in the Dáil Chamber when I asked that question but we are no further on. There are meetings in Laois on issue - I am sure it affects other counties - to try to get a solution.

What has happened since the commitment was given in September that the Minister would sit down with the handful of remaining local authorities? Has he sat down with the remaining local authorities? Have his officials sat down with the local authority chief executive officers to see why they are holding this up?

On 29 November it was stated that the Department officials were again meeting with the CEOs of the local authorities. Has there been progress as a result of that? The Data Protection Commissioner does not have any concerns about the legislation and that the data controller would be the local authorities.

The community alert groups, such as those in Mullaghmore, Woodenbridge and Mountmellick, are all shackled despite having raised thousands of euro. They cannot move ahead to implement the scheme. It is very disappointing because Laois has a motorway running through it and people there are particularly vulnerable. There is concern about the issue in all those neighbourhoods.

People are trying to work with the Garda and there is good co-operation with gardaí. We have a good joint policing committee in the county, and a good superintendent and assistant superintendent who work with the local communities to help out in every way they can.

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