Results 1,401-1,420 of 6,728 for speaker:John Curran

Seanad: Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (7 Jul 2009)

John Curran: The amendment is self-explanatory. The current provision obliges a Minister who is considering the release of a debtor in any circumstances to consult the District Court judge who ordered the debtor's imprisonment. The only condition currently is that the consultation may be practicable. The Attorney General has recommended the proposed amendment be incorporated to provide a workable...

Seanad: Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (7 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I thank the Senators for their contributions.

Seanad: Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (7 Jul 2009)

John Curran: In my last point I said I did not envisage this provision having widespread use. The consultation with the judge is merely repeated from the 1940 Act. The amendment reduces the likelihood of any future consultation being undertaken. The Attorney General recommended that the proposed amendment be incorporated to provide a workable procedure to be followed in the future.

Seanad: Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (7 Jul 2009)

John Curran: Obviously I do not know if the section of the 1940 Act has been used. However, I reiterate that this comes with the advice of the Attorney General. As I said at the outset, the purpose of this legislation was not to revisit all the other issues that arose here today. I believe there will be more substantial legislation on foot of the Law Reform Commission's proposals in due course.

Seanad: Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (7 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I accept the logic behind Senator Regan's amendment but we are primarily concentrating on amending the relevant portions of the 1940 Act, rather than the 1926 Act to which he referred. I do not intend accepting the amendment at the moment but the matter will be examined as part of the ongoing Law Reform Commission's review. Senator Regan made a point, which I intend to pursue, on the court...

Seanad: Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (7 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I will reconsider it. I specifically asked my officials to examine it, particularly with relevance to the High Court ruling of 18 June and to make sure that the legislation complies with it. If necessary, an amendment will be brought forward when the Bill is taken in the Dáil.

Written Answers — National Drugs Strategy: National Drugs Strategy (8 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I propose to take Questions Nos. 357 and 358 together. The Government approved the establishment of an Office of the Minister for Drugs (OMD) on 16 June. The main staffing cohort for the new Office will be drawn from my Department. A total of 14 people are currently working in this area, which equates just under 12 whole time equivalents. Direct involvement of the broader statutory sector...

Written Answers — National Drugs Strategy: National Drugs Strategy (8 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I propose to take Questions Nos. 359, 361, 362 and 363 together. The revised funding allocations for the period July to December 2009, taking account of the Supplementary Budget in April, have now been advised to all Local Drugs Task Forces (LDTFs) and to seven of the Regional Drugs Task Forces (RDTFs). Approval was conditional on the requisite information being furnished by them and...

Written Answers — Sports Funding: Sports Funding (9 Jul 2009)

John Curran: My predecessor approved the following funding last year. Payments of €185,000 were approved in respect of Basketball Ireland, €235,000 for the FAI and €85,000 for the GAA. In regard to local authorities, payments were approved as outlined in the following table: City/County € Dublin City 250,000 Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown 55,000 Fingal 115,000 South Dublin 85,000 Kildare 55,000...

Written Answers — Security of the Elderly: Security of the Elderly (9 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I am assuming that the Deputy is referring to the recent suspension of the Scheme of Community Support for Older People and I would like to direct him to my reply to question number 452 on 9th June 2009.

Written Answers — National Drugs Strategy: National Drugs Strategy (9 Jul 2009)

John Curran: An amount of €22.3m has been earmarked for allocation to the 14 Local Drugs Task Forces in 2009. Of this amount, €22.04m has been allocated to date and the details in relation to this and the allocations for 2008 are set out in the table. Drugs Task Force Allocation 2008 Allocation 2009 €m €m Ballyfermot 1.83 1.62 Ballymun 1.43 1.32 Blanchardstown 1.39 1.25 Bray 1.80...

Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Jul 2009)

John Curran: As we have discussed, the Bill, as drafted, represents an interim response to the McCann judgment. The draft legislation replaces section 6 of the 1940 Act with a carefully balanced range of safeguards and protections designed to take account of all the principles raised in the High Court. The Bill should be seen in that light. It is only three weeks yesterday since the High Court...

Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Jul 2009)

John Curran: The section provides that a person arrested on foot of a bench warrant should be brought before a court "as soon as practicable". This is a standard provision and the Deputy will be aware that the Garda routinely brings people before the courts all around the country on foot of bench warrants. I am not aware of any undue delay in this regard. Where difficulties arise in this area, there...

Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I understand the Deputy's concern. I have sought advice on this proposal and I am informed it is unnecessary. A District Court judge may hear the evidence on oath and the debtor is subject to cross-examination in the ordinary course of proceedings in the District Court. There is no necessity to provide for this directly and, accordingly, the amendment is being rejected.

Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I know where the Deputy is coming from because I dealt with this or a very similar amendment in the Seanad and sought advice thereon. I was told the amendment in the Seanad was unnecessary and that there is a preference in drafting for avoiding the making of unnecessary references because doing so adds to the already convoluted nature of legislation. Having examined the Deputy's amendment...

Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I thank the Deputy for his suggestion in this regard. The 1872 Act did confer jurisdiction on the Circuit Court and High Court in debt matters in addition to the District Court. However, even by the time the 1926 Act was drafted, it was recognised that the District Court was the jurisdiction in which such matters were commonly dealt with. It constructed the legal framework that is used to...

Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Jul 2009)

John Curran: It has not been repealed but it is not in use. The 1940 Act is in use.

Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Jul 2009)

John Curran: I will do my best for the Deputy. I heard him say on Second Stage that he would withdraw the amendment and understood the reasons and I heard the Deputy's points. On the scale of the debt, if it is a legitimate debt it is fine. As to whether a person's past record is taken into account it is a question of how one looks at it. It is not taken into account in the manner in which the Deputy...

Written Answers — Residency Permits: Residency Permits (16 Sep 2009)

John Curran: The person concerned applied for asylum on 7 July 2003. In accordance with Section 9 of the Refugee Act 1996 (as amended), the person concerned was entitled to remain in the State until his application for asylum was decided. His asylum application was refused following consideration of his case by the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner and, on appeal, the Refugee Appeals...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (16 Sep 2009)

John Curran: The Government has agreed with the US, as part of that administration's arrangements for the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, to accept the persons concerned for long term resettlement in Ireland. No decisions have been taken as yet as about their accommodation. It is also unclear how much support they will need in order to be resettled and to integrate successfully into...