Results 4,961-4,980 of 9,159 for speaker:Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of Bail Bill 2015: Discussion (4 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Similar to Senator Ivana Bacik, I commend all the witnesses on their presentations. Even though I was late, I had the presentations with me to read. I agree with some of the analysis that we can have a panic reaction sometimes to waves of crime but that does not make for good law and we need to be thoughtful. Our committee has a strong track record in that regard, having compiled a report...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of Bail Bill 2015: Discussion (4 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Representatives from Muintir na Tíre appeared before this committee today. I am sure the witnesses are familiar with that organisation and its excellent work on the community alert and text alert schemes in rural areas and its initiatives in partnership with An Garda Síochána. Muintir na Tíre welcomed the Criminal Justice (Burglary of Dwellings) Bill 2015. There are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (4 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The joint committee has received a total of 152 petitions to date since the launch of the petitions system. The secretariat has been examining them to establish their admissibility and decide how best to make progress with a petition for consideration by the joint sub-committee. Some 133 of the 152 petitions received have been brought before the committee on at least one occasion. Of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (4 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Is that agreed? Agreed. We will move on to petition No. P00015/15 which relates to cearta vótála - voting rights - and is in the name of Mr. Norman Wilson. The petitioner who is an Irish citizen residing in Australia is requesting that citizens of Ireland who live abroad have voting rights in Oireachtas and European Parliament elections. In its fifth report which was published...

Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Report Stage (11 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: For the record of the Dáil, there were two sittings at which this Bill was considered on Committee Stage. The Minister of State, Deputy Dara Murphy, presided over the first sitting. The Minister of State, Deputy Ó Ríordáin, presided over the second sitting which was unfortunately and disappointingly scheduled at a time and date when it could not be attended by any of the...

Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Report Stage (11 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: As the Minister of State will recall, we had an extensive debate on this matter on Committee Stage. I am very alarmed. When the Minister was in attendance at an event organised by the Law Society and the IHREC, Mr. Conor Brady, a former member of GSOC, made the sensible proposal that wherever something was deemed to be a matter of State security by the Garda when the police authority or...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I welcome the Commissioner. Her opening presentation was very reassuring, particularly the new TRUST approach. My first question is on the closure of Garda stations. The Garda Representative Association continually asserts that this has impacted negatively on the ability of front-line gardaí to deal with criminality. What is the Commissioner's response to its assertion?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly commissioner carried out an extensive examination of cross-Border crime over the course of a year. The commissioner met senior police officers in An Garda Síochána and the PSNI, the various local authorities and a range of agencies across the Border. It was an excellent report. One of its 16 key recommendations was the establishment of a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The Garda Inspectorate has produced two reports in recent years. The first was on the issue of fixed penalty points. The second was on the findings of a three-year investigation into crime. It is welcome that the Commissioner and the Minister for Justice and Equality have fully endorsed both reports. I understand that working groups are in place to implement the recommendations. Can the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: We are almost two hours into this meeting and people are coming late to put questions, which is fair enough. There has been much misrepresentation of a letter sent by the Commissioner to me. In fairness to her, at no stage did she state that the IRA does not exist, either in that letter or at any stage orally or in written form, and it is important to put this on the record. I disagree...

Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: An Garda Síochána is perhaps unique. I am not sure if it is the only one, but it is one of the few police services in the world that retains security and policing responsibilities. To compare it with the North is not to make an exact comparison. There are a number of intelligence agencies, including MI5 and MI6, that operate internally and externally from Whitehall and on the...

Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I move amendment No. 4:In page 7, line 15, to delete “the Minister” and substitute “a member of the judiciary, as delegated by the Chief Justice”.

Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I am.

Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I move amendment No. 6:In page 7, line 16, to delete “the Minister” and substitute “a member of the judiciary”.

Order of Business (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The Deputy should cop himself on. This is the people's Parliament, not just a place of work. This is the people's Parliament. The Deputy should cop himself on. His Government has destroyed people's lives.

Order of Business (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The Deputies should cop themselves on. They are a bunch of babies, whimpering babies.

Order of Business (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Whimpering babies is what they are.

Order of Business (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The Deputy should cop himself on.

Order of Business (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Was Deputy Butler there?

Order of Business (12 Nov 2015)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: He should cop himself on. He is an eejit and should cop himself on.