Results 741-760 of 7,652 for speaker:Joanna Tuffy

Seanad: Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Bill 1999: Committee Stage. (30 Nov 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: The Minister of State's response to my amendment and that of my Fine Gael colleagues is that he is concerned that the measure proposed would bring about another layer of bureaucracy and would require another implementation body. I share his concern about that type of approach. The problem for the Carline learning centre, to whose funding difficulties the Minister of State has given...

Seanad: Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Bill 1999: Committee Stage. (30 Nov 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 4: In page 6, to delete lines 33 to 36. The wording in lines 33 to 36 would reverse a Supreme Court decision and would undermine normal court procedures in an undesirable way. We wish to uphold the existing Supreme Court decision and normal court procedures. It is important that due process is allowed so that the Act can stand up legally and under the European Convention...

Seanad: Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Bill 1999: Committee Stage. (30 Nov 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: While what the Minister of State has outlined makes sense, if in the absence of their being prescribed elsewhere, the Supreme Court sets out what it considers are the necessary procedures, surely it views these procedures as being fundamental. The Minister of State believes legislators may prescribe an alternative procedure to that which the Supreme Court might prescribe in the absence of the...

Seanad: Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Bill 1999: Committee Stage. (30 Nov 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I would like the Minister of State to clarify a number of matters as regards the new section 16A and subsection (2), which states: Evidence that is admissible by virtue of subsection (1) shall not be admitted if the court is of the opinion that in the interests of justice it ought not to be admitted. What is the reason for the amendment in the first place, since the courts have decided it was...

Seanad: Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Bill 1999: Committee Stage. (30 Nov 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 9: In page 10, between lines 5 and 6 to insert the following: "and (c) by the addition of a paragraph (e) as follows- '(e) under the Companies Acts 1963 to 2003 for the carrying on of any function exercisable by the Director of Corporate Enforcement,'.". This amendment would extend the powers of the Criminal Assets Bureau to take action against companies under the...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects. (30 Nov 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to raise this matter and the Minister of State, Deputy Seán Power, for coming to the House. The issue is self-explanatory. I request a list of all the schools in my constituency of Dublin Mid-West that have requested building works or building repairs and an indication of which of these requests have been approved. I also ask the Minister of State to...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects. (30 Nov 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: Can the Minister of State offer a timeframe for when this information will be available from departmental officials?

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 1: In page 9, between lines 19 and 20, to insert the following subsection: "(2) The Garda Síochána Acts 1923 to 2003 (so far as unrepealed by this Act), the Garda Síochána (Compensation) Acts 1941 to 2003 (so far as unrepealed by this Act) and this Act shall be construed together as one and may be cited as the Garda Síochána Acts 1923 to 2004.". In this amendment we...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 2: In page 10, before section 4, to insert the following new section: "4.—Every order or regulation made by the Minister pursuant to this Act shall be laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas and, if a resolution annulling the regulation or order is passed within the next twenty-one days after the House has sat following such laying, the order or regulation shall be...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: Why would it not be appropriate in the case of section 106?

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 3: In page 11, line 12, subsection (1)(b), after "property" to insert "and the human rights of individuals within the State". The purpose of the amendment is to provide that it would be a function of the Garda Síochána to protect the human rights of individuals as well as life and property. Section 7(4) already provides for protection of human rights. For that reason it...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: Section 7(4) states the Garda Síochána "shall have regard to the importance of upholding human rights". What is the purpose of the words "shall have regard to"? Will it be mandatory for a garda to have regard to human rights? Legislation frequently uses the term "have regard to" for the purpose of requiring a person to take a matter on board. Does this terminology make it permissible for...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: In response to Senator Walsh, the purpose of the amendment is to protect the human rights of the wider public, not to afford greater protection to the human rights of one section of it. Although the public wants a strong police force, it also wants it to be accountable and trustworthy. Legislation providing for the protection of human rights is one way of achieving this.

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 5: In page 11, subsection (3), line 25, to delete "Garda Síochána's functions are to" and substitute "Garda Síochána shall". This is a drafting amendment. The existing wording is ungainly in terms of grammar. It states the Garda's functions are to perform any other functions. It would be better to use the word "shall" rather than "are to".

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 7: In page 11, lines 34 to 41 to delete subsection (6). Subsection (6) undoes much of section 7 and renders it meaningless. It is an opt-out clause in terms of rights the section might create. Section 7 confers rights, such as how gardaí should act in their dealings with the public. Why then provide an opt-out clause?

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: The point of the section is to require the Garda Síochána to perform particular functions in a particular way. Surely one way of ensuring it follows the provisions is to provide that gardaí could incur liability. I wonder if the Minister is taking away the force of the section in removing such liability. Senator Maurice Hayes mentioned that people have recourse through the complaints...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 8: In page 12, subsection (3), line 7, after "In" to insert "deciding whether to institute or in". Amendment No. 8 is a drafting amendment which seeks caution in terms of the interpretation of the wording currently used. The subsection, as drafted, presumes that members of the Garda Síochána would be instituting the proceedings as opposed to making a decision on whether...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I appreciate the Minister's comments. Amendment No. 9 seeks to clarify whether the Director of Public Prosecutions is entitled to prohibit members of the Garda Síochána from instituting certain types of proceedings at all or without specific reference from the director. Amendment No. 10 provides that proceedings shall not be invalid where the section has been ignored. It would be wrong for...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: I move amendment No. 13: In page 13, before section 9, to insert the following new section:— "9.—The Commissioner and members of the Garda Síochána shall be accountable to a Garda Síochána Board, which shall consist of a chairperson and members appointed in a manner determined by regulations made by the Minister, and the Board shall have the function of giving general direction and...

Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (7 Dec 2004)

Joanna Tuffy: The amendment includes a reference to "the Minister" in that the Minister would determine the manner in which the members were appointed to the board. It provides also that the board shall perform such other functions as are specified in regulations made by the Minister. Contrary to what the Minister said, the board envisaged by this amendment would not be a political body in the way he...