Results 7,001-7,020 of 15,536 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can inform the Deputy that the project to provide in-cell telephony across the Prison Estate is complete in Castlerea, Cloverhill, Midlands, Cork and Limerick prisons.  (This excludes the old female unit as the new unit is currently nearing completion).  The Prison Service is acutely aware of the importance of assisting prisoners to maintain close contact with family and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Peace Commissioners (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy may be aware, Peace Commissioners are appointed by the Minister for Justice under section 88 of the Courts of Justice Act 1924, for the county in which they reside and adjoining counties. A Peace Commissioner is an honorary appointment and those appointed receive no remuneration or compensation by way of fees or expenses for their services. The appointment of a...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Correspondence (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Private Security Authority (PSA) is the statutory body with responsibility for licensing and regulating the private security industry in Ireland. The PSA is an independent body under the aegis of the Department of Justice. Established following the passing of the Private Security Services Act in 2004, the PSA started licensing security contractors in 2006 and security employees...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can advise that the Deputy that there were 105 committals to the prison estate of persons to be detained on foot of immigration warrants from 1 April, 2021 to 23 May 2022. Information in this regard is set out in the table below as requested.   The table below provides the information in tabular form as requested. Month by year Number of committals ...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Correspondence (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I would like to extend my deepest sympathies to the family for their loss in such tragic circumstances. I am very conscious of the deep trauma and distress experienced by the families of murder victims in Ireland and I am aware of the specific concerns raised by the family in recent weeks in respect of the management of this prisoners’ sentence.  I understand how profoundly...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Rights of the Child (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Government continues to be strongly committed to the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. A number of significant pieces of legislation had to be passed to ensure that Ireland is in compliance with the obligations of the Optional Protocol. The enactment of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 and the Criminal Justice...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Reports (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 165 and 166 together. The Office of the Inspector of Prisons was established under the Prisons Act 2007 and is independent in how it carries out its functions. The Inspector's key role is to carry out regular inspections of prisons.  There are currently two reports submitted to me by the Inspector of Prisons which relate to Mountjoy...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Reviews (25 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: In December 2020, information came to light that a prisoner was released early because of a miscalculation of his release date. When it became clear that the release date had been miscalculated, the prisoner in question was returned to custody and I directed the Irish Prison Service to report on the incident and review its practices. This review, which involved an examination of all...

Property Services (Land Price Register) Bill 2021: Second Stage [Private Members] (26 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I might not take all of my 20 minutes. I thank the Ceann Comhairle and Deputies Cian O'Callaghan and Nash. I am grateful for the opportunity to set out the Government's position on this Bill. At the outset, I want to inform the House that the Government must oppose this Bill. I will set out the reasons for that. It is not because we do not support greater transparency with respect to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legislative Programme (26 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Programme for Government commits to modernising our licensing laws and application processes, and my Justice Plan 2022 commits to publishing and enacting new laws to update and modernise licensing laws. I am delivering on that commitment by preparing Heads of a General Scheme of a Sale of Alcohol Bill. The objective of the proposed Bill is to repeal the Licensing Acts 1833 to 2018, the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Citizenship Applications (26 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can confirm that the Citizenship Division of my Department intends to issue the updated scorecard on or before 1 July 2022.  Since the introduction of the scorecard there has been a marked increase in new citizenship applications, with more than 5,000 new applications received in the first four months of this year. This equates to an almost 40% increase in new applications...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Ukraine War (26 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: There is a coordinated whole-of-Government response to support people arriving in Ireland who have fled the violence in Ukraine. Government Departments and services are working together to implement Ireland's commitments under the EU Temporary Protection Directive (2001/55/EC), which has been activated for the first time to grant temporary protection to displaced persons from Ukraine. ...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Residency Permits (26 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can confirm that an application to renew the permission to remain in the State from the person referred to by the Deputy has been approved. They can expect to receive their new Irish Residence Permit (IRP) card within the next 10 working days. Officials working in the Registration Office of my Department have also made direct contact with the person concerned regarding the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Citizenship Applications (26 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The application for naturalisation from the person referred to by the Deputy, continues to be processed with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation, and will be submitted to me for decision in due course. In accordance with the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, an applicant must have had a...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Citizenship Applications (26 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The application for naturalisation from the person referred to by the Deputy, continues to be processed with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation, and will be submitted to me for decision in due course. In accordance with the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, an applicant must have had a...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Residency Permits (31 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: The immigration case of the person referred to by the Deputy is impacted by the European Court of Justice judgment in the Chenchooliah case. My Department has, last week, issued the person concerned with a short-term permission on Stamp 1 conditions, which allows them to work without the need for an employment permit. Their longer-term position in the State is expected to be decided on...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (31 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can advise the Deputy that the Irish Prison Service introduced a new Code of Ethics for staff in December 2021. The new Code sets out the values and behaviours which are expected of and demonstrated by prison staff across the Service on a daily basis. The Code is grounded on the Prison Service core values namely: Teamwork; Integrity; Unlocking potential; Safety, and Support. The document...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (31 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will appreciate, oversight and evaluation are important elements in developing and improving our penal system. Independent prison monitoring is an essential part of accountability for any modern prison system. The European Prison Rules stipulate that the conditions of detention and treatment of prisoners are monitored by an independent body or bodies whose findings are made...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (31 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I wish to advise the Deputy that the provisions for the use of force by prison officers is set out in Rule 93 (1) of the Prison Rules 2007 (SI 252/2007). This rule is explicit in outlining the circumstances in which force may be lawfully used by an Officer and the factors to be considered by an Officer in deciding the amount of force to be used. The rule states: “Where, for the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (31 May 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can advise the Deputy that the implementation of Circular 19/2016 Civil Service Disciplinary Code on 1 October 2020 has brought the Irish Prison Service into line with the wider Civil Service in terms of the process for the management of staff disciplinary issues. Utilising the Civil Service Disciplinary Code has allowed the Prison Service to draw on the experiences of the wider Civil...