Results 8,481-8,500 of 16,849 for speaker:Dermot Ahern

Written Answers — Residency Permits: Residency Permits (9 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I refer the Deputy to Parliamentary Question No. 328 of Tuesday 25 November 2008 and the written Reply to that Question. The person concerned applied for asylum on 20 January 2004. As part of the process of having his asylum claims investigated, the person concerned was invited to attend for interview at the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner on 15 September 2004. The person...

Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (9 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: An application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to in the Deputy's Question was received in the Citizenship Division of my Department in August 2007. Officials in that Section inform me that documentation has been requested from the person concerned. Further processing of the application will continue once the requested documentation is received.

Crime Prevention. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: Tackling organised and gangland crime remains my primary concern. Significant efforts and resources are already being directed on an ongoing basis in tackling organised crime and gangland culture. The State will be relentless in its approach in bringing those involved in such activities to justice. An Garda Síochána already co-ordinates a wide range of multi-agency activities to disrupt...

Crime Prevention. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: It is true to say that illegal drugs and their importation is a very large component of the issue of gangland crime in this country. To be fair, there is a question in regard to the related issue to which the Deputy refers. With regard to the drugs issue generally, there is a special national drugs unit, comprising 60 gardaí of all ranks at headquarters, and across the country there are...

Crime Prevention. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I am somewhat reluctant to deal with the matter in response to this question because to be fair to Deputy Rabbitte he has tabled a priority question specifically on that issue. When this issue first arose in the media, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, which we established as an independent agency, set up a public interest inquiry under section 102 of the 2005 Act that we passed....

Crime Prevention. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I know that political charges have been made in this House. Neither my Department nor I had any hand, act or part in the granting of any of these licences, which is purely a matter for the Department of Transport liaising with the Garda Síochána.

Garda Investigations. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I have previously informed the House that I received an interim report from the Garda Commissioner concerning certain inquiries being carried out by an assistant commissioner into events related to a particular case involving a convicted drug dealer. I am informed by the Commissioner that those inquiries are still ongoing and I await a full report from the Commissioner as soon as those...

Garda Investigations. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: There was no delay on my part. When I got the interim report from the Garda Commissioner, I suggested, and it was agreed, that the interim report would be sent to the Garda Ombudsman Commission. I did so because it raised serious questions and serious questions were being raised in the media on the issue. As I said, with regard to the granting of a licence, neither I nor the Department had...

Garda Investigations. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: With regard to the report, the Garda quickly produced an interim report. That interim report was referred immediately to the Garda Ombudsman Commission. A final report by the Garda Síochána is due and it will, ultimately, be fed into the Garda Ombudsman Commission. On the issue of a nolle prosequi, it is not for me to say whether that should have been put into the District Court at that...

Garda Investigations. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: Regarding the Deputy's allegations about people being informers or gardaí being complicit in any wrongdoing, I strongly suggest that he leave the matter to the independent Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, which was rightly established and given powers by the House in the aftermath of the Morris tribunal, to determine whether there has been any wrongdoing. It should be done by an...

Garda Investigations. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: Yes. I have been informed by the Garda Commissioner that the Garda is co-operating fully despite what has been reported in the media.

Crime Prevention. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: Persons involved in organised criminal activities are being targeted by An Garda Síochána in a number of ways, including uniform and plain clothes personnel overtly and covertly disrupting known criminals in the course of criminal activities. Such criminals, their operating methods, criminal interests and financial assets are proactively targeted through intelligence-led operations, for...

Crime Prevention. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I am satisfied with the co-operation. While I was the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs from 1997 to 2002, I instigated multi-agency checkpoints, which were criticised by parts of the House. The checkpoints comprised gardaí, social welfare officers and officials from the Departments of Transport and the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, customs and Revenue. Over...

Crime Prevention. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: Absolutely. If one considers the social welfare Vote, in which there have been savings of €476 million through fraud controls in 2008, this is a wider issue. There is a concentrated issue that pertains in particular to those involved in gangland crime. Such people are profiled through the CAB profilers, of whom there are 102 and who operate in every Garda district nationwide, to ensure...

Garda Recruitment. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: As the Minister for Finance has made clear, the moratorium on recruitment and promotions in the public service applies to the Garda Síochána, both members and civilian support staff. By its nature, it has no application to the Garda Reserve, whose members are unpaid volunteers who do not occupy public service posts. The Minister for Finance also made clear that this measure is not an...

Garda Recruitment. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I do not have those figures in respect of each quarter but somewhere in the region of 200 or 250 gardaí, the same number as have come through until recently, have continued to flow through the system until the end of the year. A smaller intake, 100 per quarter, was taken on over the past two quarters. In 2010 the number of attested gardaí qualifying will be reduced. Regarding the figure...

Garda Recruitment. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I did not, I was going to be thrown out.

Garda Recruitment. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I know it is a long time ago but, when the rainbow coalition was in office, it froze the number of gardaí throughout its period in government.

Garda Recruitment. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: I have given the figures, which have increased by thousands since this Government came to office, particularly since 1997, when the rainbow coalition was last in government.

Garda Recruitment. (22 Apr 2009)

Dermot Ahern: It must be said that, at the last election in 2007 this party promised that we would reach 15,000 by 2010. In fact we will be next or near that-----