Results 4,241-4,260 of 16,849 for speaker:Dermot Ahern

Freedom of Information. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I gave my response in my original reply. It is not feasible at this stage. It would create an unnecessary administrative burden on the Garda even in regard to issues that are not security determined. At the end of the day, Members say in the House that we do not have sufficient gardaí. The Government is on an upward scale recruiting. A total of 1,100 gardaí are in training in order...

Freedom of Information. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I do not accept that. There is oodles of accountability in the Garda Ombudsman Commission, the inspectorate and all the other changes that have taken place since the Morris tribunal.

Departmental Bodies. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I must stress I have had no role in regard to the inception, detail or design of the campaign in question. As the Deputy noted, the fifth annual Say No to Ageism Week campaign ran this year between 19 May and 23 May. It was launched by my colleague, Deputy Máire Hoctor, Minister of State with responsibility for older people. It is a joint initiative of the National Council on Ageing and...

Departmental Bodies. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: The Equality Authority is an independent statutory body and it is independent in the exercise of its statutory functions. It is not within my remit to run it on a day-to-day basis. The authority must take into account the views expressed by public representatives such as the Deputy, particularly given he raised them in the House. The Equality Authority could be called to one of the...

Departmental Bodies. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: Again, I would say that the authority is independent. Obviously, I would not want any agency under my authority to promote something that would cause difficulty and annoyance for people. There is no doubt that the authority should bear in mind that it must be very careful in what it does but to be fair, it was endeavouring as much as possible to highlight the issue of assisting older people...

Garda Stations. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: There are a total of 703 Garda stations throughout the country ranging from large 24-hour divisional and district HQ stations to smaller rural stations. This wide geographical spread of Garda stations is a valuable resource for local communities even in cases where small stations are open to the public for only a number of hours per week. They provide an important link between the gardaí...

Garda Stations. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: The gardaí are currently reviewing this situation and a number of changes are pending in respect of the divisional boundaries as they impact on rural policing. I have met the Garda Commissioner quite a number of times since I became Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform a few weeks ago. One of the issues that arose concerned rural policing, which is a key priority for the Garda...

Garda Stations. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I agree with that.

Garda Stations. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: In the context of Deputy Flanagan's question, I would expect that the Garda Síochána, when considering changes to divisional boundaries, would bear in mind the necessity to review the issue of the refurbishment of existing Garda stations. On the general issue of policing, particularly rural policing, it is not just a matter of building more Garda stations. Under the policing plan...

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: There are 261 attested reserve gardaí and 46 reserve trainees. The 261 attested members currently operational are assigned as follows: 121 in the Dublin metropolitan region, 29 in Cork and 111 in other stations across the country. Rather than taking up time reading the breakdown of those numbers across more than 70 stations, the details will be appended to the reply and placed on the...

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I believe that in 2006 — I am not sure if the Deputy is referring to that year or to 2007 — 330 applicants were successful in gaining places. There is a high level of attrition among those who apply, for a myriad of reasons. Some applicants were not available for interview when called, others were not able to take up training, many have joined the full-time Garda force and quite a...

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: A total of 172 were interviewed and 109 were approved.

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: It is a particularly good figure and is something the Deputy should welcome.

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I do no know because the recruitment process is dealt with by the Public Appointments Service.

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I thank Deputy Timmins for the complimentary remarks on the Garda reserve because it is a good initiative.

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: I do not accept for one minute that it is a failure, or a costly failure. The current level of funding for the recruiting and training of the Garda reserve force is in the region of €600,000 per year, which is a reasonable figure in the context of an overall sum of €1.6 billion for the Garda Síochána Vote.

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: It assists the work of the Garda Síochána, which is welcome. On the question of training, the members of the Garda Reserve receive substantial training, some 120 hours of initial training spread over four phases. In response to Deputy Timmins's question on Garda training and Garda Reserve training generally, I acknowledge there is a strain on the existing facilities. That is one of the...

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: If I remember correctly——

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: ——under Enda's famous contract, Fine Gael promised to increase Garda Síochána numbers to 15,000 by 2012.

Garda Reserve Force. (28 May 2008)

Dermot Ahern: That is two years later than we promised to deliver that number.