Results 2,141-2,160 of 20,459 for speaker:Frances Fitzgerald

Other Questions: Underage Drinking (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: The position is there are robust provisions in place regarding the sale and the consumption of intoxicating liquor by persons under the age of 18 years. The law in this area was most recently amended by the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2008, which amended the Licensing Acts 1833 to 2004 and the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 with the aim of reducing access to alcohol and at the same...

Other Questions: Underage Drinking (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: I agree with the Deputy. As a mother of three sons who are thankfully now older, I can empathise with her concerns about young people. We have to approach this on a number of different levels. Enforcement is one part. My own view is that the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill is really important legislation. I am struck again and again by the ambivalent attitudes often displayed in this House...

Other Questions: Garda Deployment (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: I will give Deputy Casey a breakdown of the detailed information requested about numbers of newly attested gardaí allocated to the Wicklow division since the first attestation of trainee gardaí in April 2015, and the number of gardaí assigned to the Wicklow division on 30 September 2014 and 28 February 2017, the latest date for which I have figures. I can go into some detail...

Other Questions: Garda Deployment (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: Deputy Casey makes the case for County Wicklow and of course other Deputies here would make the case for their areas. I recognise that more gardaí are needed right across State. This is why we have the recruitment programme. It is not going to happen overnight. The Garda Commissioner makes the decision and it is a completely independent operational decision. The Department of...

Other Questions: Garda Deployment (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: Deputy Casey makes the case for Wicklow very well. Obviously, I will follow that issue up and I will communicate with him directly on the last issue he raised. I have no doubt that the police force in his area will make headquarters aware of the need for the area. The Garda Commissioner has to examine the different needs in different areas. We have to become more flexible about the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Garda College (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: Yes, I can confirm that.

Other Questions: Garda Strength (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: The Garda Commissioner, who is responsible for the allocation of Garda resources, has indicated in her policing plan for 2017 a commitment to increase the number of personnel dedicated to traffic duties by 10% to reflect the increasing numbers of personnel across the entire organisation. This should also lead to better outcomes regarding road traffic enforcement. The modernisation and...

Other Questions: Garda Strength (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: Deputy Broughan has posed a number of interesting questions, as has Deputy Lahart. Since becoming Minister for Justice and Equality, the issue of statistics has been at the core of my concern about the ICT requirements in An Garda Síochána, not just nationally but internationally. I have had many meetings on this. I have tried to ensure data can be exchanged not just nationally...

Other Questions: Garda Strength (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: I have said that my goal from the very beginning has been to give An Garda Síochána the resources it needs to arrive at a point where it has the IT instruments that will ensure the most reliable statistics we can possibly get. As we have seen this week, it is also about what is inputted into that database. I hope that very serious lessons have been learnt in the discussions, and...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Garda College (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: My Department's initial submission, and I stress it is an initial submission, in the context of the mid-term review of the capital plan references the need for funding for the proposed developments as follows. As I told the Deputy, it is the ten-unit classroom, the new purpose-built education and training facility and a residential accommodation block. I stress that the costs are only...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Garda College (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: Regarding official accommodation, the position is that seven properties have been sold by the Office of Public Works and the sale of one further property is agreed. Four properties are occupied by serving Garda members. Two properties are to be allocated for training purposes, and six properties are under consideration as to their future use. I take the point the Deputy is making. In...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Garda College (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: Deputy Murphy has asked a number of questions regarding the internal audit. They are serious issues in regard to the governance and accountability in the college and they must be addressed comprehensively. Some of the main issues of concern highlighted by the report include the manner in which the college was run, the existence of a large number of bank accounts and investment accounts...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Garda College (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: -----and I recognise her interest in this issue and that she raised it at the Committee of Public Accounts. I should have referred to the Committee of Public Accounts Committee - because I got a letter from the Committee of Public Accounts - and not the Oireachtas justice committee in my response to her. I made a mistake in that regard. Clearly, there could not have been a full discussion...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Garda College (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: I repeat that I absolutely recognise the seriousness of this issue and the seriousness with which Deputy Murphy regards the issues that have emerged in the report published yesterday. The Committee of Public Accounts, of which the Deputy is a member, will be discussing it fully. We only now have the full report. The issues are very serious, including the existence of a large number of bank...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Workplace Relations Commission (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: There is very close involvement. I encourage the associations to have very close involvement with the consultation process. I will ensure that the associations are integrated into the second phase of the working group, which concerns industrial relations in An Garda Síochána. I have asked officials in the Department to liaise with the chair of the working group and the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Workplace Relations Commission (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: I welcome what Deputy O'Callaghan has said about the importance of rebuilding confidence in An Garda Síochána. We have to take what happened extremely seriously and put all the resources we can into ensuring that oversight is stronger and that public confidence is restored. More transparency within An Garda Síochána is one of the ways forward. Government has a role in...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Garda College (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: As Deputy Lowry will appreciate, the programme of replacement and refurbishment of Garda accommodation is progressed by the Garda authorities and the Office of Public Works. As Minister, I have no direct role in these matters. However, I want to give the Deputy as much information as possible. The Deputy will be aware that the Garda College was reopened following the lifting of the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Policing Issues (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: I met the Garda Commissioner and her team last Monday. I also met the chairperson of the Policing Authority and I have articulated my very serious concerns over the past week to her and in general about the extent of the road traffic enforcement issues highlighted by An Garda Síochána and the significant numbers involved. I am also very concerned about the confidence issues the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Policing Issues (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: Of course I raised that question with her because many colleagues in the House were asking me what precisely was meant by the fact that there could be other issues and I was concerned to know if she was referring to any specific area of concern. The information she gave me in reply was that it was by way of a more general concern or belief that other issues may emerge. Statistics and their...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Workplace Relations Commission (30 Mar 2017)

Frances Fitzgerald: This working group has been established to consider the technical legislative changes required to provide the Garda associations with access to the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court. This will involve consideration of a number of important and complex issues. The group brings together officials from the Departments and bodies with the relevant expertise and responsibility...