Results 15,961-15,980 of 19,162 for speaker:Alan Shatter

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: It will be one of various referendums that, I anticipate, will be held on what we are going to call "constitutional day", although someone may have a more trendy term for it. Clearly there will be more than one referendum to be held in the context of all of this. This will be an international agreement at European Union level between member states once it is agreed. We are heading in that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: As many of these instruments are due to be revisited in the not-too-distant future we are not entirely convinced that this procedure is necessary but I am not unduly excited about it either. There is always a degree of concern on the part of member states when the Commission is making proposals of this nature. There might be a little more to it and member states might find that some...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: In the case of some of the instruments we have suggested that they are better left as they are until they come up for review. However, there are equally valid views on the other side. There is an extraordinary amount of suspicion that the Commission is always trying to impinge on State powers. Permit me to defend the Commission to some degree. Often what are proposed are common sense...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: We are now straying widely from the two issues we are dealing with, but I have no difficulty with that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: I know Commissioner Reding's views on these issues. She delivered an interesting and thoughtful speech in this area. There is an issue within the EU which is of some importance, that is, when new member states seek to join there are, rightly, various conditions to ensure that the rule of law is respected in those member states, that the courts are fully independent and that there is no...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: There is one thing I should clarify because we are dealing with two different issues. The more technical issues that I discussed with Senator Bacik would involve the council and parliament but the patent arrangement is by way of an international agreement so it does not formally involve the council and parliament although it does involve 25 EU member states. Technically we are dealing with...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: No, we have a few choices. We opt in and if there is a final outcome we are part of it, or we do not opt in which means we cannot formally propose amendments to it and when it is decided in its final form we decide whether we should opt in to it as it is, warts and all, even if there are parts we do not like and on which we might have had a greater impact had we participated. That is why it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: One of the first things we did was to change all the forms. It did not require any legislation. The legislation was still the same citizenship legislation but the forms were amended to make them more comprehensible and simple. This is an example of what we are talking about when we say that we do not and should not need to have a consultation with the European Council and the European...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: It would be an international agreement initially. An international agreement is not automatically part of our domestic law. Our courts system is provided for in the Constitution. One of the key articles is Article 34. What we would effectively do by becoming a party to this is agreeing that a litigious matter in the courts that is currently part of the exclusive jurisdiction of our High...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: I do not know. We think Denmark may but I am not entirely sure. We require to have it because of the way it is framed under our constitutional system.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: Spain, Italy and Portugal are not participating.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: They have their own reasons.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: From a business perspective this would be a huge advantage to the major multinational companies here, and particularly to some of our smaller domestic companies engaged in very important research. The bigger ones can cope with the additional expense involved but the smaller ones being able to register a patent in one location, which applies across 25 European Union countries, is very...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: What I understand will happen is that the Irish Patents Office will still exist in the context of Irish patents but a patent will be processed through the European Patent Office. If one lodges it in the Irish Patents Office, that is all one needs to do.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: Where it will be located is one of the issues yet to be dealt with. Some of the procedural issues are yet to be finalised.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Scrutiny of EU Legislative Proposals (6 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: They have not come to a decision yet as to whether they will opt into this. I do not know the answer to that question. They will make their own decisions as they deem appropriate. They do not always approach these issues from the same perspective as we do.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Vetting of Personnel (7 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: I am informed by the Garda authorities that it is not possible to check the status of the application referred to in the absence of details of a date of birth. If the Deputy will provide the additional information, I will have further enquiries made in the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Vetting of Personnel (7 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: I am informed by the Garda authorities that no vetting application has been received in respect of the person to whom the Deputy refers. In the circumstances, I can only suggest that the person contacts the registered organisation involved.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Visa Applications (7 Nov 2013)

Alan Shatter: Each visa application is considered on its individual merits with the onus resting on the applicant to satisfy the visa officer as to why the visa sought should be granted. As every visa applicant and their family circumstances are unique, it is not possible to be completely prescriptive about the circumstances which would result in a visa application being approved for a dependent family...