Results 7,041-7,060 of 18,761 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I agree that there is a new and growing phenomenon of criminal gangs committing murder for a variety of purposes. There is no complacency on my part. I have been in regular contact with the Commissioner, assuring him all resources possible. I have strengthened the law and made available vast sums for overtime for surveillance operations, etc. I will carry out any action I am asked to...

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am not implying that but there has not been a dramatic upsurge. The Deputy referred to four shootings in Limerick, Ballybough, Swords and Drogheda. My best information is that there were a variety of motives behind the offences. Two were quasi-domestic, to use a terrible phrase, while two appear to be drug-related. It is frightening that the people engaged in drug killings now seem to...

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am making the point that resources are available. I do not want to hog the time available but a problem with detection rates is that there is a culture of omerta, even among victims.

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am sorry to inform the House that in one case an individual was shot from behind in a motor car by somebody who was known to the person concerned. The bullet went through the back of the man's head, came out through his mouth under his nose. He survived but despite his ordeal, he would not co-operate in any way with the Garda Síochána in identifying the perpetrator.

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: It is not just a matter of the man being terrorised. There is also a code of omerta among the people concerned. They will not supply information to the Garda Síochána. We are proceeding with other issues and intensifying the effort to put proper DNA and forensic analysis facilities in place in the force. It is astonishing to be faced with a case in which a person will not co-operate...

Garda Recruitment. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: Appointments to Garda recruitment interview boards, including those for reserve members, are a matter for the Garda authorities and the Public Appointments Service. I have no function in appointing persons to such boards. In the particular case neither I nor the Commissioner was personally aware of the appointment. The Commissioner has informed me he would not have approved of the...

Garda Recruitment. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I will deal comprehensively with the issue of the Garda authority in the coming week. It is time this issue was crystalised and——

Garda Recruitment. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: No, I promise a public statement of all the reasons it would be disastrous to establish an independent Garda authority. Members can wait for that——

Garda Recruitment. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: ——and we can have a good debate on it. To answer Deputy Cuffe's question, of course, it was a mistake to put that person on the board. I do not know precisely why that mistake happened. It was a mistake that will not be repeated. I spoke to the Commissioner about it and he shares my view and surprise it happened. It may have been an innocent blunder rather than anything sinister....

Garda Recruitment. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: It is not a question of it being somebody else's fault.

Garda Recruitment. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: The Commissioner indicated it will not recur and has given directions to ensure it will not recur. Obviously, it was not brought to his attention. If it had been, he would not have approved. All I can tell the Deputy is the truth, which is somebody who should have thought carefully but did not made an erroneous decision. The decision was not taken at the level of Commissioner. In the...

Bail Laws. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I propose to bring forward a number of amendments to the law on bail in the criminal justice (miscellaneous provisions) Bill which I hope to publish early next year. As the Deputy is aware, two statutes are relevant to the operation of the arrangements for bail. The Bail Act 1997 deals with the system generally and gives effect to the terms of the Sixteenth Amendment of the Constitution....

Bail Laws. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I agree with the Deputy that the figures are a matter of concern. Without doubt, people of criminal propensity tend to abuse bail when they are given it.

Bail Laws. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: It is a long-established pattern. The deterrent of making the sentence for any subsequent offence run consecutively does not seem to be as strong as it was hoped at the time of the bail referendum and when the 1984 legislation was passed. I agree with the Deputy that this is the case. There are a number of issues involved. First, the Deputy raised the possibility of extending the type and...

Bail Laws. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am not suggesting the Deputy's idea is wrong but it would perhaps be better if we considered giving some level of the Judiciary, perhaps a Circuit Court judge, the right to make decisions in respect of a series of bail issues and then have an appeal to a single High Court judge. Having three judges sitting, as the Court of Criminal Appeal normally would consist of, on bail appeals could be...

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am aware of the report in question which asserts that there was a 26% increase in burglaries in the 12 month period from June 2005 to June 2006 and a 12% increase in burglaries in Dublin — not, as the question suggested, 35%. I am a little perplexed by this because when I looked at the report on the Internet, it stated "the eircom PhoneWatch Burglary Report was conducted by the OSG...

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: It is a fair sample but I presume one would not be able to make an insurance claim unless one reported a burglary to the Garda Síochána. This is normally part and parcel of making a claim.

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I understood insurance companies would not pay out on a burglary claim unless the burglary were reported to the Garda Síochána. Otherwise they would be very vulnerable to fraudulent claims. I find it somewhat perplexing that the figures in this survey which is partial and based on a loss adjuster approach are different from those of the Garda Síochána, given that I would expect every...

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am not; I am just trying to explain the difference because the Deputy's question is a serious one. It implies that a private sector body's report seems to differ substantially from that of the Central Statistics Office. I am slightly perplexed about how there could be such a wide divergence. It could be a definitional matter. A possible explanation is that the taking of a garden spade...

Crime Levels. (7 Dec 2006)

Michael McDowell: The answer to the last question is definitely yes. Visible community policing and the use of mountain bike patrols and the like comprise a very strong counter-agent to burglary. Deputy Burton who tabled the question seems to have gotten one point wrong because the burglary report states "Dublin continues to top Ireland's burglary table with a 12% increase in burglaries, representing 35% of...