Results 7,761-7,780 of 18,729 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I take it that the Deputy is referring to the conditions under which the non-EEA parents of children born in Ireland prior to 1 January 2005 are granted residency in the State. The Deputy will be aware that children born to foreign national parents on or after 1 January 2005 are not automatically entitled to Irish citizenship. I announced details of new arrangements to deal with the...

Written Answers — Garda Investigations: Garda Investigations (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have requested a report from the Garda authorities in respect of the matters concerned and I will revert to the Deputy when this report is to hand.

Written Answers — School Absenteeism: School Absenteeism (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: As I stated in my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 197 of 9 March 2006 matters relating to school attendance and child care and protection issues are the responsibility of the Ministers for Education and Science and Health and Children respectively. However I requested a report from the Garda authorities in respect of the persons concerned. I have now been informed by the Garda authorities...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: There are approximately 22,000 staff, including gardaí, prison officers, courts staff, departmental headquarter staff and Land Registry officials on the payroll of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. On 31 December 2004 30 staff were on suspension with pay. On 31 December 2005 the figure was 36. These figures amount to 0.13% and 0.16% of total staff respectively. The Deputy...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I apologise for delaying the House. These are minor technical amendments. Amendments Nos. 1 and 31 correct simple typographical errors in sections 2 and 48. The reference in section 2(3)(c) to section 68(1)(c) should have been to section 67(1)(b) and the reference at section 48(4)(c) regarding the nominated judge informing the witness of his or her right should be to section 49. Amendment No....

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The intention of Senator Tuffy's amendment is to add to the grounds on which mutual legal assistance would be refused. The amendment proposes that mutual legal assistance would be refused if there were reasonable grounds for believing that such assistance might result in the person being subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, in addition to him or her being subjected to...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The Senator is referring to anticipated amendments in the Criminal Justice Bill which is before the other House and in that context I do not want to anticipate the debate in that House. I concede, however, that the issues that will arise in that debate have a bearing on this issue but we should jump that stream when we come to it.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am very grateful to Senator Tuffy for moving this amendment and to her colleagues for tabling it. The proposed amendment would broaden the definition of the term "account" where it is used in the legislation and on the face of it there are aspects of it which appear to merit inclusion in the Bill. I ask Senator Tuffy to give me more time to examine the wording she has proposed, in...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: Again, I am grateful to Senator Tuffy for tabling these amendments. They are to permit the applications in respect of these orders to be heard otherwise than in public. There is precedent for this in other areas. Perhaps the Senator will let me do the same as I proposed earlier, that is, consult with the Parliamentary Counsel on the matter. If the Parliamentary Counsel is satisfied with the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: Amendments Nos. 13 and 18 would have the effect of deleting the provision that an account information or account monitoring order made with regard to criminal investigations in the State or in a member state of the European Union would have effect as if they were orders of the District Court. The effect of the acceptance of amendment No. 26 would be to delete the reference to an order made...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The amendment seeks to permit account information or account monitoring orders to be made relating to financial institutions in the European Union outside Ireland and to financial institutions in Ireland which are not in the district of the District Court to which the judge is assigned. Under section 12(2), applications for account information and account monitoring orders may relate to...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am grateful to the Senator for tabling this amendment. I fully agree with her and the wording in the amendment is correct. I accept the amendment.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I will seek further advice from the Attorney General on that point. The purpose of the provision is to give effect to Articles 18.6 and 18.7 of the convention of 2000 and the provision is included to give Ireland the option of making a notification to the European Union at the time of ratification that we are unable to provide for immediate interception and transmission of telecommunications...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: On the last point, section 85(3) applies the Data Protection Act to this material, therefore, the issue is covered. What the Senators are asking me to do from two different perspectives is to establish a set of safeguards in Irish domestic law, which we apply to Irish domestic circumstances and which are intended to ensure there is scrutiny and oversight of how this is operated. I am...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I accept that.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: That was then and I am not sure whether the late Jim Mitchell or Deputy Noonan introduced the current regime relating to the interception of telecommunications. However, it works well and there is no possibility of a Minister doing this off his or her own bat. A triple lock is in place because a security agency is required to make an independent request, which must then be considered by a...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I will look at it again and do my best to accommodate some safeguard to deal with the genuine point raised by Senators Cummins and Tuffy.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: When I saw this amendment I had sympathy with the view expressed as the same question occurred to me. My Department considered this originally when the Bill was being drafted. The strong advice from the Attorney General and the Garda Síochána was to the effect that they did not want the proceeds of crime orders to be put into a criminal context. The reason for this is that the philosophical...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I agree this proposal is of value. Section 24 of the Criminal Justice Act 1997 deals with the making of restraint orders. A number of the sections of that Act, as listed in section 84(a) of the Bill also deal with restraint orders. Section 84(a) deals with the relevant provisions in the 1994 Act by changing the name to "freezing order". The section to which the Senator refers deals with the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: Section 42 differentiates between property that is money and property that is not money. Subsection (5) deals specifically with the confiscation co-operation order relating to a sum of money. It provides that such an order will act as a confiscation order requiring the person to pay the relevant sum of money. Subsection (6) is designed to cater for a confiscation co-operation order, with the...