Results 4,601-4,620 of 20,459 for speaker:Frances Fitzgerald

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Immigration Status (27 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the person concerned made an application for a residence card, under the provisions of the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) Regulations 2015 on 29 March, 2016. I understand that INIS has now written to the legal representatives of the person concerned seeking additional...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Naturalisation Eligibility (27 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that there is no record of an application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to by the Deputy, who currently has permission to reside in the State until 2 October 2018. It is open to any individual to lodge an application for citizenship if and when they are in a position to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Naturalisation Eligibility (27 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that there is no record of a person registered, or of an application for a certificate of naturalisation, under the details as provided by the Deputy. A determination on whether an applicant satisfies the appropriate criteria attendant to extended residency or a naturalisation can only be made after an...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Immigration Status (27 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that correspondence was received on 14 October, 2016 indicating that the person concerned wishes to apply for a change of residency status in the State. The person referred to by Deputy is now seeking permission to reside and work in the State based on their parentage of an Irish citizen child. On the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legal Services Regulation (27 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: The Legal Services Regulatory Authority which has eleven members, including a lay majority and a lay Chairperson, is publicly accountable as a body corporate for the performance of those functions which it is required to carry out under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015. Under section 21 of the Act the Authority is publicly accountable in terms of its making an annual report to the...

Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I thank Deputy Jim O'Callaghan for preparing and tabling the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2016 and for providing an opportunity for the House to debate this topic today. Reform of the judicial appointments process is a priority for me and for the Government and is an area which is the subject of intensive work at present. The current programme for Government contains commitments to...

Seanad: Corporate Manslaughter (No. 2) Bill 2016: Second Stage (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I thank Senators for their contributions on this very important topic and I thank Senators Mark Daly, Robbie Gallagher, and Lorraine Clifford-Lee for introducing the Bill. We can all agree that where there has been an incident which results in the homicide of a person or persons, it must receive a strong response from the criminal justice system. Fatalities which occur as a result of gross...

Seanad: Corporate Manslaughter (No. 2) Bill 2016: Second Stage (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: We need to debate precisely where the responsibility would lie and whether it is the right public policy. We are talking about boundary issues here that we need to examine further. I suggest that we have amendments that would confine the scope of the corporate manslaughter offence to corporate bodies. This is clearly an area of concern as well. In number of areas, the Bill does not set...

Seanad: Corporate Manslaughter (No. 2) Bill 2016: Second Stage (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: It is in the penalties section.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Retirements (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I propose to take Questions Nos. 50 and 51 together. I have been advised by the Garda Commissioner that the following table sets out the number of members of An Garda Síochána, by rank, who must compulsorily retire by the end of the 2016, 2017 and 2018. Retirement of members of An Garda Síochána is governed by statutory provisions which set the mandatory retirement age...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Deportation Orders Re-examination (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the person referred to was deported to Brazil on 13 July 2016. The consequence of a Deportation Order is that the person concerned must leave and remain outside the State. Representations were received from the personconcerned pursuant to Section 3 (11) of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended), to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Victim Support Services (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: In consultation with the Garda Síochána my Department is examining the procedures for conducting identification parades. Alternative procedures which are used in some other countries provide for identification by electronic means. However any changes in these procedures must have regard to the rights of accused persons to be fully informed of the evidence against them, and the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Court Accommodation Refurbishment (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: As the Deputy will be aware, under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts, including the provision of accommodation for court sittings, is the responsibility of the Courts Service which is independent in exercising its functions. However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have had enquiries made and the Courts Service has informed me that the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Unaccompanied Minors and Separated Children (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: The ongoing migration crisis is a serious and extremely complex challenge facing the EU with numerous pressure points and it is important that there be a coherent and coordinated response. Persons who are currently in another EU Member State, including those in the camps in Calais and elsewhere, and who are in need of international protection, are entitled to make an application for asylum...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Defence of the Dwelling (26 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: The first course of action for any householder faced with a trespasser or burglar should be, where circumstances permit, to call the Garda Síochána. They are best placed to deal with violent offenders and to investigate offences. As I outlined in my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 58 from the Deputy on 21 July this year, the Criminal Law (Defence and the Dwelling) Act 2011...

Topical Issues: Garda Industrial Relations (25 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I thank the Deputy for the approach he has taken. The Government understands the very real anger that is out there which, as I said, is shared by many in the public sector and the public at large because of the very tough decisions that had to be taken in recent years and the impact that has been felt so deeply by many people, including gardaí, who feel it very deeply. However, it is...

Topical Issues: Garda Industrial Relations (25 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. As he stated, the negotiations are at a sensitive stage. For the moment, we must concentrate on securing a satisfactory resolution to the ongoing talks. I assure the House that every effort is being made to resolve the dispute in the only way that it can be resolved, namely, through negotiation. Intensive discussions are taking place....

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: UN Conventions Ratification (25 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I propose to take Questions Nos. 77 to 79, inclusive, and 100 together. On 21 October 2015, the previous Government published a roadmap to Ireland's ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which outlines the considerable legislative changes to be undertaken to enable Ireland to ratify the Convention, along with the estimated deadline of...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Services for People with Disabilities (25 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I propose to take Questions Nos. 80 and 154 together. The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 completed its passage through both Houses of the Oireachtas on 17 December 2015 and was signed into law on 30 December 2015. The Act provides a modern statutory framework to support decision-making by adults with capacity difficulties. Commencement of the Act will take place on a phased...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Valuation Office (25 Oct 2016)

Frances Fitzgerald: I propose to take Questions Nos. 81 to 86, inclusive, together. The Commissioner of Valuation, who is independent in the exercise of his functions, has overall responsibility under the Valuation Acts 2001 to 2015 for the maintenance of valuation lists of all commercial properties in the State. This is done by using two statutory valuation processes known as “revaluation” and...