Results 9,461-9,480 of 20,459 for speaker:Frances Fitzgerald

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Spent Convictions Legislation (3 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I thank Senator Bacik for raising this issue and giving me an opportunity to update the House on the situation in relation to it. The Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill 2012 has passed Committee Stage in the Dáil, having passed all Stages in the Seanad. However, before the Bill could be taken at Report Stage, a 2013 UK Court of Appeal judgment necessitated a review of the...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Spent Convictions Legislation (3 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I realise the importance of this legislation and its implications for individuals. As the Senator said, offences which often may have been committed much earlier in a person's life become an impediment to taking up a job. I realise the urgency of this legislation and I will be introducing those amendments as soon as they are finalised. I intend to have the Bill enacted before the summer.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Direct Provision System (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I have previously acknowledged that the length of time that applicants spend in the protection process is a matter that needs to be addressed particularly in light of the sharp increase in asylum application volumes in 2014 and so far in 2015. The Deputy may be aware that an Independent Working Group was established in October 2014 to recommend to the Government what improvements should be...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Properties (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I wish to inform the Deputy that it has not been possible to provide the information required in the time available. The information is currently being collated and will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as it is to hand.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Refugee Status Applications (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: The person concerned arrived in the State on 15 July 2009 and subsequently failed to establish their entitlement to be declared a Refugee following assessment of their claim by both the Refugee Applications Commissioner and on appeal, the Refugee Appeals Tribunal. They were subsequently deemed not to qualify for Subsidiary Protection. Having fulfilled the appropriate statutory...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Road Traffic Accidents Data (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I have requested a report from the Garda authorities in relation to the matter referred to by the Deputy. I will contact the Deputy directly as soon as the report is to hand.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Road Traffic Offences (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I wish to advise the Deputy that I am making enquiries with the Courts Service and the Garda Síochána in relation to the information sought by the Deputy and I will write to the Deputy directly as soon as it is to hand.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Road Traffic Offences (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am informed by the Garda authorities that, as of the 1 March 2015, 63,131 fixed charge notices have issued since 2013 in respect of the offence of holding a mobile phone while in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle; the table below details the annual breakdown. It should be noted that these figures are provisional, operational and subject to change. The Garda authorities have...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Human Trafficking (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: On 1 January 2009, the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of my Department initiated a data collection strategy for the purpose of gaining a more in-depth understanding of the nature and extent of human trafficking in Ireland. To date, annual reports for 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 have been published and are available from Ireland’s dedicated anti-human trafficking website, , in addition to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Remuneration (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: Details of the remuneration package, ie basic pay and allowances were made available to all applicants prior to the commencement of the current recruitment competition. That competition attracted over 20,000 applications in late 2013 and the most recent batch of recruits joined the force in January of this year. While the remuneration of Garda members is being reviewed under the Haddington...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Appointments to State Boards (4 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am interpreting the Deputy’s question in a broad manner so as to provide the information which I believe she is seeking. The term 'State Boards' is somewhat imprecise as it includes bodies with a wide and diverse range of functions many of which would not fall into the more commonly understood definition of Board which is a body with a governance oversight of an organisation. To be...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Courts Service (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: The Companies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2013, which granted the Circuit Court jurisdiction to deal with examinership applications in respect of small private companies which meet certain criteria, is the responsibility of my colleague the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. The Deputy will be aware that, under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Anti-Social Behaviour (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I have requested a report from the Garda authorities in relation to the matter referred to by the Deputy. I will contact the Deputy directly as soon as the report is to hand.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Court Accommodation Refurbishment (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: As the Deputy is aware, the Courts Service Act 1998 provides that management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service which is independent in exercising its functions, which include the provision of accommodation for court sittings. However, in order to be of assistance I have had enquiries made and have been informed that at the request of the Courts Service the Office...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Spent Convictions Legislation (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I propose to take Questions Nos. 138 and 139 together. The Criminal Justice Spent Convictions Bill has passed Committee Stage in the Dáil, having passed all stages in the Seanad. However, before the Bill could be taken at Report Stage, a 2013 UK Court of Appeal judgment necessitated a review of the disclosure provisions in both the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Surveys (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I have been informed by the Garda Commissioner that An Garda Síochána does not commission surveys on the state of morale within the organisation, however management at all levels continuously address issues affecting members under their command. Garda management has a responsibility for creating a climate in which people are highly motivated. Accordingly, the issue of morale is...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Naturalisation Applications (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the statistics requested by the Deputy are not readily available and could only be compiled by the allocation of an inordinate amount of staff time and resources. As the Deputy will appreciate there are many applications across a range of categories which result in a decision being made which...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigations (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: The Garda Síochána Act 2005 makes provision for the compilation and publication of crime statistics by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), as the national statistical agency, and the CSO has established a dedicated unit for this purpose. I have asked the CSO to provide available statistics on the number of recorded fraud offences and prosecutions in the years referred to directly...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Fuel Quality (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I wish to advise the Deputy that a reply to Parliamentary Question No. 74 (initial order No. 572) issued from my office on 26 February 2015.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Fuel Quality (5 Mar 2015)

Frances Fitzgerald: I wish to advise the Deputy that it is not possible to provide the data sought in the time available for reply. However, I have requested the Garda authorities to provide the requested information and I will arrange for all available information to be forwarded to the Deputy upon receipt.