Results 2,401-2,420 of 12,630 for speaker:Willie O'Dea

Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006 [Seanad]: Report and Final Stages (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: Yes, that is still the position. I intend to do it when the opportunity arises.

Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006 [Seanad]: Report and Final Stages (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: The Bill provides that any members of the Defence Forces who are barristers or solicitors may not be members of a court martial board. The amendment seeks to remove this provision. A person in the Defence Forces who is legally qualified is a potential member of the legal service. This fact should cast doubt on his or her independence. In the recently passed UK Armed Forces Act 2006 such...

Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006 [Seanad]: Report and Final Stages (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: The current provisions in the Bill are modelled on section 5 of the Criminal Justice Act 1993. Although I would have no objection to the general intention of the amendment, I do not consider it appropriate to depart from the current position in ordinary criminal law. There would appear to be a practice of making it possible for a relative of the deceased to make a statement, rather than it...

Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006 [Seanad]: Report and Final Stages (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: I thank all the Deputies from both sides of the House who contributed to the debate on the Bill. Subsequent to the debate on Second Stage, I received the finalised report from the Irish Human Rights Commission detailing its observations on the proposals contained in the Bill. The report is comprehensive. I wish to record my appreciation of the valuable work done by the commission in...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: Aside from staff who are availing of statutory/civil service leave entitlements (maternity leave, sick leave, annual leave, etc.) my Department has no staff who are in receipt of full salary and not working.

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: I understand that the person concerned has applied through FÁS, the Training and Employment Authority, for positions of Storekeeper Clerk and General Operative in the Logistics Base, the Curragh Camp, Co. Kildare. The applications will be considered in due course along with the many other applications received for these posts.

Written Answers — Defence Forces Strength: Defence Forces Strength (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: The strength of the Permanent Defence Force on 28 February 2007, the latest date for which detailed figures are available, as advised by the military authorities was 10,370. A detailed breakdown of the numbers in the Army, Naval Service and Air Corps by rank are in the Tables. The Tables also provide the comparable details for the Army Reserve and the Naval Service Reserve. The White Paper on...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: No member of staff in my Department has two or more phone lines provided at their home.

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: The amount of money paid in travel and subsistence to trainers in my Department in 2006 was €19,363. A total of 843 training days were organised for the same period. The Training Officer attends meetings of the Training Officer Network every quarter and to date these have alternated between Dublin and Tullamore. The relocation of CMOD has not had any other significant impact on the work...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: When the Civil Service Training Centre was based in Dublin, only staff based outside of Dublin were eligible for travel and subsistence expenses in respect of attendance at courses at the Centre. In the period from 1 January 2005 up to the re-location of the Centre to Tullamore in July, 2006 only one member of my Department's staff based outside Dublin attended a pre-retirement course in...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (3 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: Of the 41 staff who transferred into this Department one has moved to another section in the Department within a short space of time. I am not aware of any implications for staff morale.

Written Answers — Appointments to State Boards: Appointments to State Boards (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: The number of nominations made from each gender to State Boards for which my Department has responsibility is outlined hereunder: Coiste an Asgard Year Male Female 2002 6 2 2003 1 0 2004 1 0 2005 4 0 2006 0 0 2007 0 0 Army Pensions Board Year Male Female 2002 1 0 2003 0 0 2004 0 0 2005 0 0 2006 0 0 2007 0 0 Civil Defence Board Year Male Female 2002 10 4 2003 0 0 2004 3...

Written Answers — Appointments to State Boards: Appointments to State Boards (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: I do not envisage making appointments to State Boards, other bodies under the aegis of my Department, or other public appointments of any kind between 29 March 2007 and 4 July 2007.

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: Amendment No. 1 changes the manner in which alternate members of the committee established for the purpose of selecting an officer to be a director of military prosecutions are appointed. The committee consists of the Chief of Staff, a High Court judge and the Director of Public Prosecutions. Alternative members of the committee would be required if either the judge of the High Court...

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: I thank Senator Brian Hayes for his support and I commend the amendment to the House.

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: Amendment No. 2 removes the requirement that the delegation of functions by the chief military judge to another military judge would be subject to the consent of the Judge Advocate General. This amendment was made as a consequence to the amendment made on Committee Stage in this House which gave the President rather than the Judge Advocate General the role of appointing a military judge to...

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: Amendments Nos. 3 to 6, inclusive, are a response to an observation raised by the Irish Human Rights Commission with regard to a senior member on a court martial board and the possibility that such an appointment could give rise to influence among members of the board. The proposed senior member was designed to replace the former appointment of president of the court martial. However, I am...

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: As I stated when speaking about the previous group of amendments, further to the observations of the Irish Human Rights Commission on section 40, I am satisfied we can dispense entirely with all references in the Bill to "senior member" of a court martial. Amendments Nos. 7 to 9, inclusive, give effect to this in respect of section 40 which deals with the constitution of limited courts...

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: Amendment No. 12 is a typographical correction. It merely corrects an incorrect reference in Schedule 2 from section 169(3)(d) to the correct reference to section 169(3)(g).

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2006: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (4 Apr 2007)

Willie O'Dea: I thank Senators for the constructive debate we had on the Bill and for the helpful amendments tabled in this House. As I stated previously, it is intended that the Bill will reflect and further enhance the non-statutory interim measures implemented to date for the summary investigation of offences and the conduct of courts martial under the Defence Acts. This Bill is a major advancement...