Results 5,961-5,980 of 16,537 for speaker:Brian Lenihan Jnr

Written Answers — Proposed Legislation: Proposed Legislation (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I can inform the Deputy that I have written to the Office of the Attorney General seeking advice in the matter.

Written Answers — Legal Aid Service: Legal Aid Service (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Under the terms of the Civil Legal Aid Act, 1995, the Legal Aid Board has sole responsibility for deciding if an applicant is eligible for its services, in accordance with the provision of the Act and Regulations made thereunder, and I can have no involvement in individual cases. However, I am informed by the Legal Aid Board that, as with all applicants for legal aid whose applications are...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Group 1 relates to the amendment of the Long Title. This amendment has simplified the Long Title, which would be too unwieldy if all of the instruments were included in the Title. I refer to the international instruments.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: This is a large number of amendments but they are purely technical in character. They do not involve any substantive change in the Bill. A number of them correct typographical errors while others provide greater clarity in regard to the interpretation of the Bill. New definitions have been introduced in the light of the additional mutual assistance instruments which will now be given...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Group 3 relates to the Swiss Confederation. There is a fraud agreement between the European Community and Switzerland and these amendments give effect to the mutual assistance provisions in Title III of this international agreement. The majority of the provisions were already included in the Bill as a result of giving effect to other instruments. However, amendments were required to...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I welcome Senator Hannigan's contribution and the earlier contribution by Senator Cummins and the broad welcome they have extended to this legislation. The legislation is a Bill initiated in Seanad Éireann and it underwent substantial revision and change in Dáil Éireann. I appreciate the positive spirit in which the Senator has addressed that because the option for me was to deal with...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I am glad to say the Labour Party supported us in the decision we took and, candidly, it would be much more difficult to persuade the Irish people to vote "Yes" if they knew that we could be overruled in sensitive areas of our legal system by our European partners. We had that debate last autumn. We are completely committed to working with our European partners on combating crime but we are...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I thank Senators for the speedy way in which today's business was dispatched. Some Members have a good understanding of the legislation because it was, of course, also considered by the previous Seanad, where it was first introduced. I acknowledge the kind remarks made about my staff. There is no doubt the Department was obliged to invest a phenomenal amount of work into the legislation....

Written Answers — Visa Applications: Visa Applications (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The application referred to by the Deputy was received in the Visa Office, Dublin on 3 April 2008. It was refused by the Visa Officer on 9 April 2008 for the following reasons: 1. The financial evidence provided was deemed insufficient; 2. The Visa Officer was not satisfied that the conditions of the visa would be observed and considered that the applicant may overstay following the...

Written Answers — Tribunals of Inquiry: Tribunals of Inquiry (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I propose to take Questions Nos. 358 and 389 together. As the Deputy will be aware, Mr. John Gallagher, SC, was appointed last year to carry out an independent examination of the issues raised in the submission 'Nothing But the Truth', made by the Stardust Victims Committee. Terms of reference were agreed with the Committee and these were placed in the public domain by Mr. Gallagher. The...

Written Answers — Residency Permits: Residency Permits (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service receives a considerable and diverse range of applications for permission to remain in the State including applications for long term residency. As the Deputy will appreciate, the processing time for dealing with such applications can vary depending on the type of application involved and the particular circumstances of the individual...

Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The position in relation to processing times for applications for long-term residency and for naturalisation remains as outlined in my response to Parliamentary Questions Numbers 616 and 617 of 5 February, 2008.

Written Answers — Residency Permits: Residency Permits (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The statistics requested by the Deputy are as follows: Year Granted Refused 2005 January 26 16 February 42 23 March 50 23 April 50 36 May 54 31 June 11 60 July 37 41 August 50 103 September 21 42 October 28 70 November 38 113 December 56 80 2006 January 68 155 February 77 86 March 150 142 April 132 100 May 162 103 June 107 83 July 93 55 August 93 48 September 94...

Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The compilation of statistics relating to the number of decisions taken to grant or refuse an application for naturalisation for each month for each of the past three years would require a disproportionate and inordinate amount of staff time and effort to prepare and could not be justified in current circumstances where there are other significant demands on resources.

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that my Department has taken a strong lead in the provision of education and training programmes to our staff and I am satisfied that officials at all levels are being provided with the opportunity to develop as individuals, and to contribute to the advancement of the goals of my Department in the areas of Justice and Equality. A total of €828,000 was spent...

Written Answers — Visa Applications: Visa Applications (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The applications referred to by the Deputy were refused originally by the Visa Officer on 6 November, 2007 and the subsequent appeals were refused by the Appeals Officer on 4 February, 2008. Letters were posted to both applicants on that date informing them of the decisions. The appeals were refused because the Appeals Officer was not satisfied with the quality of the documentation supplied...

Written Answers — Residency Permits: Residency Permits (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I am informed by the Immigration Division of my Department that there is no record of an application under the Family Reunification scheme for the person in question.

Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: An application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to in the Deputy's question was received in the Citizenship section of my Department in January 2008. The application has not been examined in detail. Examination of the residency will take place in the near future. The applicant will be informed at that time when the application will be further examined or of any...

Written Answers — Garda Remuneration: Garda Remuneration (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Any comparison with transfers generally in the Public Service must take into account the fact that the duties of An Garda Síochána are unique and wide ranging. This is evident in the requirement for Garda recruits to undergo a two year intensive training programme. These unique duties and training requirements militate against the introduction of a similar incremental credit scheme as is...

Written Answers — Asylum Applications: Asylum Applications (22 Apr 2008)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The person concerned, accompanied by his two children, arrived in the State on 4 April 2006 and applied for asylum. His asylum application was refused following the consideration of his case by the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner and, on appeal, by the Refugee Appeals Tribunal. Subsequently, in accordance with Section 3 of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended), the person...