Results 861-880 of 10,120 for speaker:Jim O'Callaghan

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Youth Services (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: I am committed to improving outcomes for young people at risk of a life of criminality through investment in youth justice services. The statutory Youth Diversion Programme is supported by a network of Youth Diversion Projects (YDPs). Youth Diversion Projects are community-based multi-agency crime prevention initiatives, which seek to divert young people who have become involved in...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The Government is acutely aware of capacity constraints across the prison estate and has committed, in the Programme for Government, to increasing capacity by 1,500. The average daily prison population and official bed capacity of each custodial institution are published on a daily basis and are available on the Irish Prison Service website (www.irishprisons.ie). This information can be...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: International Protection (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: As Minister for Justice, my goal is to ensure a robust and enforced immigration system. The international protection system should be efficient, giving people speedy decisions as to whether they are being granted international protection and integrated into our society, or not. At the beginning of 2022, Ireland's international protection accommodation service sheltered about 7,000...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: I have provided the below table, based on figures from An Garda Síochána, which details the total number of resignations and retirements from An Garda Síochána over the past five years as of April 2025. It also outlines intakes into the Garda College and attestations over the past five years as of March 2025, which reflects the most recent intake and attestation from the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. The Garda Vote in Budget 2025 saw unprecedented funding of over €2.48 billion for this year, a 27% increase since 2020 , this is allowing for sustained investment in recruitment, equipment,...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Inspector of Prisons (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP) was established under the Prisons Act 2007 and is independent in how it carries out its functions. The Inspector's role is to carry out regular inspections of prisons. As part of this work the Office of the Inspector of Prisons carries out inspections comprising General Inspections and Thematic Inspections (i.e. inspections of a specific...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Housing Provision (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: I have been briefed on the operation of Accommodation Recognition Payment (ARP) in advance of the recent transfer of functions and engaged with Ministers Foley and Browne in connection with the Order made by Minister Foley on 27 March 2025 extending the scheme for a further year. The Deputy will be recall that it was also indicated at that time that, subsequent to the extension, a further...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: Community policing is at the heart of An Garda Síochána and is something that all Garda members have a role in. A member of An Garda Síochána is deemed to be a ‘Community Garda’ where that person is allocated to a Community Policing Team (CPT), and is responsible and accountable for applying a problem–solving approach to appropriate crime and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legislative Reviews (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020, also known as Coco’s Law, was enacted in 2021. This Act provides for offences relating to the recording, distribution or publication of intimate images and for the anonymity of victims of those offences; and for an offence involving the distribution, publication or sending of threatening or grossly offensive...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The Irish Prison Service must make the best use of all available prison capacity when managing accommodation across the estate.Sex offenders, both sentenced and remand, were previously accommodated at 4 locations – Midlands Prison, Arbour Hill Prison, Castlerea Prison and Mountjoy Training Unit. However, due to limitations at these locations and rising sex offender committals to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The Programme for Government commits to recruiting 5,000 Gardaí over five years. The Garda workforce is currently at its highest ever level, at almost 18,000 people, comprising 14,146 members, 3,502 staff and 318 reserves. I am informed that when allocating and transferring Garda members to and from any Division, consideration is given to commitments and undertakings outlined in the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Deportation Orders (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: It is a central priority for me that our immigration laws are robust and enforced. The enforcement aspects of our laws, including deportation orders, are an essential requirement for the system to work effectively and to ensure that our people have confidence in the application of our laws in this area. My Department has taken action to significantly improve immigration enforcement measures...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The right to protest and the right of citizens to express freely their convictions and opinions is enshrined in our Constitution and in law and it is an essential part of our democracy. An Garda Síochána's policing approach at public gatherings and protests is predicated on keeping people safe, preventing any anti-social and criminal behaviour and traffic management, where...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Prevention (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: This Government takes any risk to retailers and their staff very seriously. As Minister I am acutely aware of the personal and economic impact that retail crime is having on businesses, shop workers, families and communities. Retail theft is not a victimless crime. In December 2023, Garda Operation Táirge commenced. It aims to prevent and detect Organised Retail Crime as part of An...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Gangland Crime (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: Tackling drug dealing and targeting the work of organised crime groups, who inflict intimidation and violence on families and communities, is a top priority for my Department.While the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the allocation of resources to a given area or specialist unit, unprecedented funding has been provided to An Garda Síochána, which has enabled the Commissioner...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legislative Reviews (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: My Department has substantially completed consultations and analysis on the recommendations of the Review Group and I expect to be able to propose a substantive response to those recommendations for consideration by Government in the coming months.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Courts Service (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: As the Deputy will appreciate, the scheduling of court cases and the allocation of court business are matters for the Presidents of the Courts and the presiding judges who are, under the Constitution, independent in the exercise of their judicial functions. Furthermore, under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service,...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: An Garda Síochána needs modern tools and equipment to protect people from harm and save lives. The Programme for Government includes a commitment to allow for the use of biometric technologies, which are powered by artificial intelligence, in certain, very controlled circumstances as a tool to process evidence in serious cases. Work is well advanced on the drafting of a Bill...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The total Garda workforce is currently at its highest ever level, now over 18,200 people, comprising 14,257 members, 3,670 Staff and 316 Reserves, with a government commitment to fund the recruitment of at least 5,000 new Gardaí over the next five years. By law, the distribution of Garda resources is a matter for the Commissioner. However, I am assured that Garda management keeps...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legislative Measures (15 May 2025)

Jim O'Callaghan: The disclosure of counselling records is a complex and highly sensitive balancing of individuals' rights and I am committed to ensuring that legislative provisions balance the victim’s right to personal privacy and the accused person’s right to a fair trial. Last week, I secured Government approval for the drafting of the General Scheme of the Criminal Law and Civil Law...