Results 42,921-42,940 of 51,305 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: In Stormont House in 2014, the Irish and British Governments and most of Northern Ireland's parties agreed a way forward on legacy which would meet the needs of victims, uphold human rights and contribute to reconciliation. This approach endorsed was again in the Fresh Start and New Decade, New Approach agreements. The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill published by...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: The UK government introduced secondary legislation in March to start to put in place its Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) Scheme from Autumn 2023. Under the scheme non-Visa required nationals will need to obtain an ETA before travelling to the UK. The ETA requirement will not apply to Irish citizens due to the Common Travel Area arrangements. Following extensive engagement by the...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Birth Registration (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: Foreign Birth Registration (FBR) applications are currently being processed within the normal turnaround time of between 6 and 9 months from receipt of supporting documents. Applications that require further supporting documents will take longer to process. Foreign Birth Registration, by its nature, is a detailed and complex process, often involving official documentation relating to three...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: With regard to the specific application about which the Deputy has enquired, the Passport Service has issued a passport to the applicant on 27 June 2023. The Passport Service will contact the applicant directly regarding this matter.

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Departmental Schemes (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: My Department has sanction from the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform to employ up to 30 paid interns, who are recruited on contracts of up to 22 months and paid on the Executive Officer standard PPC pay scale. Interns are recruited through an open, competitive process and are assigned to policy areas in the Department, including Development Cooperation and Africa...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Appointments (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: The only State body under the aegis of my Department is the Army Pensions Board. The Board is an independent statutory body established under the Army Pensions Act 1927. The Act specifies that the Board shall consist of a chairman and two ordinary members. The chairman and the non-military ordinary member are appointed by the Minister for Defence with the concurrence of the Minister for...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Army Ranger Wing (ARW) are the Special Operations Forces of the Defence Forces.Personnel from the ARW served in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), Afghanistan from October 2006 to March 2007 and from September 2014 to March 2015. The ARW did not deploy Special Operations Forces in any direct or indirect way to ISAF in Afghanistan. The officer referred to in book in...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 213 and 215 together. The White Paper on Defence, approved by Government in July 2015, resulted from a comprehensive examination of Defence requirements. It provides the defence policy framework for the period up to 2025. This policy framework is designed to be flexible and responsive given the dynamic nature of the security environment and enables the...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: In terms of cybersecurity, the primary role of the Defence Forces relates to the defence and security of their own networks and systems. This important role is being developed in the context of the High Level Action Plan for the Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces and will grow in importance as threats in the cyber space increase. The recommendation by the Commission on the...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: The report of the Independent Review Group (IRG) established to examine dignity and equality issues in the Defence Forces was published following Government approval on 28th March 2023. The Government agreed to progress the recommendations in the Report. This included approval in principle for the establishment of a Judge-led statutory inquiry to investigate whether there have been serious...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Commission on the Defence Forces was established on foot of a commitment in the Programme for Government, and its report was published on the 9th of February 2022. There were 69 main recommendations and with sub recommendations there were 130 recommendations in total. The Commission undertook a significant body of work, encompassing wide-ranging terms of reference. It recommended...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Commission on the Defence Forces was established on foot of a commitment in the Programme for Government. The report of the Commission was published on 9th February 2022. The Commission undertook a significant body of work, encompassing wide-ranging terms of reference. It recommended significant changes for the Defence Forces and Defence provision in Ireland. It covers high level...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Schemes (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Programme for Government commits to growing the number of apprenticeships under the Action Plan for Apprenticeships 2021 – 2025. My Department is currently in the process of implementing an apprenticeship programme for eight civilian apprentices in the Defence Forces. Civilian apprenticeships provide participants with the opportunity to gain practical, on-the-job experience and...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (13 Jul 2023)

Micheál Martin: I take it that the Deputy is referring to pensions awarded under the Army Pensions Acts 1923 to 1980 (as amended), as no Army pensions are awarded by the Courts. The Army Pensions Acts provide for the grant of pensions and gratuities to former members of the Permanent Defence Force in respect of permanent disablement due to a wound or injury attributable to military service (whether at...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Overseas Development Aid (20 Sep 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Department of Foreign Affairs provides grants from Vote 27 to NGOs to implement programmes and projects in countries classified by the OECD as eligible for overseas development assistance, as well as for global citizenship education in Ireland. The OECD has commended Ireland for the quality of our NGO partnerships as a “hallmark of Ireland's development cooperation”. The...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Ukraine War (20 Sep 2023)

Micheál Martin: There is no international regulation specifically governing munitions containing depleted uranium. However, general rules of international humanitarian law prohibit weapons, means or methods of warfare of a nature to cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering, which have indiscriminate effects or which cause widespread, long-term and severe damage to the natural environment. We...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (20 Sep 2023)

Micheál Martin: My Department ensures that there are adequate resources assigned to the Passport Service in order to service queries from customers in both Irish and English. There are currently a number of officers working in the Customer Service Hub and on the public counter of the Passport Service who are assigned to engage with customers who wish to communicate in Irish. These officers are recruited...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: EU Directives (20 Sep 2023)

Micheál Martin: Implementation of the European Accessibility Act will benefit citizens with accessibility needs, including persons with disabilities and the elderly, as well as creating opportunities for Irish and European businesses trading in accessible goods and services. The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs is awaiting the transposition of Directive 2019/882 by the Minister for Children,...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Middle East (20 Sep 2023)

Micheál Martin: On 30 December 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted resolution 77/247, which included a request to the International Court of Justice (ICJ/the Court) to render an advisory opinion on the legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. Ireland voted in favour of this resolution, which was supported by 87 UN...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Middle East (20 Sep 2023)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 14 and 19 together. I visited Israel, the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) and Jordan from 4-8 September 2023. In view of the continuing priority afforded by the Government to our relations with these partners and – in particular – the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, this visit provided an important importunity to meet with my political...