Results 9,481-9,500 of 16,457 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Victim Support Services (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 32, 42 and 60 together. I would like to thank the Deputies for raising this important matter.  My Department is leading a number of important initiatives to ensure we better support victims of crime. When a victim of crime begins to engage with the justice system they should know what to expect, be confident they will be treated respectfully and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I understand from clarifications provided, that the Deputy is referring to the procedures in place when a victim of domestic violence first makes contact with the Gardaí, and officers assess risk as part of the assistance they provide to the victim. As the Deputy will be aware, An Garda Síochána play a vital role in how we, as a State, work together to combat domestic...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy is aware, I am currently leading work on a new whole of Government strategy to combat domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. This new plan will have a particular focus on prevention, and on ensuring victims are better supported. It will set an overall goal of zero tolerance in our society of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. As part of this, I am focused on...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Judicial System (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 36, 40 and 562 together. As the Deputy will appreciate, the restricting of a person’s liberty is a serious issue, given the Constitutional presumption that a person is deemed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. While the State’s bail laws do provide for the refusal of bail in certain circumstances, the presiding judge is...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Immigration Policy (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 37 and 58 together. My Department opened the once-in-a generation scheme for the Regularisation of Long Term Undocumented Migrants in the State on 31 January 2022 for a six month period. The scheme is designed, following detailed engagement with the people affected, to give long-term undocumented people without a current...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy may be aware, in February, Ministers O’Gorman and I welcomed the publication of the Tusla review of accommodation services for victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. The review identifies priority areas where there is greatest urgency in achieving safe accommodation for victims of domestic violence and we will use the findings of this review to inform how...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Data (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy is aware, Part 4 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 provides for two new offences of paying for sexual activity with a prostitute and paying for sexual activity with a trafficked person. The Act also removes those who offer their services as a prostitute from the existing offences of soliciting for the purpose of prostitution. One purpose of these measures...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Inquiry into the Death of Mr. Shane O'Farrell (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 41 and 66 together. As the Deputy will be aware, retired Judge Gerard Haughton has been conducting a scoping exercise into the tragic circumstances surrounding Shane O'Farrell's death. The purpose of this exercise is to advise as to whether any further investigation or inquiry beyond those already carried out is necessary and, if so, to advise on the form of...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can assure the Deputy that this Government is committed to tackling domestic, sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV) in all its forms, and to ensuring that people, particularly women and vulnerable people, feel safe and are safe in our communities. The prioritisation of this hugely-important work is evident in the policy and legislative developments implemented by this Government and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Courts Service (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, this matter is one of the objectives under Goal One of Justice Plan 2022 which is to tackle crime, enhance national security and transform policing.  Specifically, objective eight contains a commitment to implement recommendations arising from a review of Courts Security. As part of that commitment, a High Level Working Group has now been established and the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Coroners Service (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The coroner service is a network of coroners in districts throughout the country. Coroners are independent quasi-judicial officials whose function is to investigate sudden and unexplained deaths so that a death certificate can issue. Many of the recommendations of the 2000 Review related to the strengthening of the legal provisions regarding the work of the coroner. There has been...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the general management and administration of the Garda organisation under the Garda Síochána Act 2005. This includes the deployment of Garda members throughout the State.  The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs, with an unprecedented...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy may be aware, I recently secured Government approval to draft legislation to make stalking and non-fatal strangulation standalone offences. The introduction of these new offences form part of the Government’s zero tolerance approach to domestic, sexual and gender based violence, and will be key actions in the Third National Strategy which is currently...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Electronic Tagging (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy may be aware, the Criminal Justice Act 2006 contains provisions for the introduction of Electronic Monitoring in this jurisdiction. Section 108 makes provision for an order for electronic monitoring in the context of a restriction of movement condition applying to the granting of temporary release.   In addition, the Government recently approved my proposal to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Alcohol Sales (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Programme for Government commits to modernising our licensing laws and application processes, and my Justice Plan 2022 commits to publishing and enacting new laws to update and modernise licensing laws. I am delivering on that commitment by preparing Heads of a General Scheme of a Sale of Alcohol Bill. The objective of the proposed Bill is to repeal the Licensing Acts 1833 to 2018, the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Cross-Border Co-operation (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Stormont House Agreement, concluded by the two Governments and the Northern Ireland Parties in December 2014, provides for a framework of measures to address the legacy of troubles-related violence in Northern Ireland.  The framework of measures agreed include the establishment of the Independent Commission on Information Retrieval (ICIR).  Given the cross-border nature...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: In 2020, the Department of Justice, in consultation with the Department for Children, Equality Integration Disability and Youth, initiated an audit of the effectiveness of existing structures to oversee domestic, sexual and gender-based violence policy and its implementation.  The aim of the audit was to examine concerns about fragmentation and gaps given that responsibility for DSGBV is...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána, including the Garda estate. As Minister, I have no direct role in these matters. The Deputy will also be aware that the Office of Public Works (OPW) has responsibility for the provision and maintenance of Garda accommodation. Works in relation to Garda...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Drug Dealing (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Government is acutely aware of the substantial and ongoing damage that drug dealing has on communities across the country. Organised criminal activity, including drug dealing, represents a serious threat to community safety. As the Deputy will be aware, the Department of Health leads on Government policy in the area of drugs, and this policy is guided by the national drugs and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (24 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I met with the Garda Commissioner in recent weeks, and we discussed if a similar scheme could be operated here. Any such proposal obviously brings data protection issues into play and we would need to be sure that such a scheme, if introduced, would be legally sound and robust. The Commissioner has undertaken to explore the possibility with his data protection and legal experts.  As to...