Results 6,261-6,280 of 15,389 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Naturalisation Applications (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: My Department is focused on continually identifying ways of improving the naturalisation process for applicants and reducing any backlog as soon as possible. Through adding staff, but also through digitising and streamlining services, processing rates have increased by over 30 percent against pre-pandemic figures. Earlier this year the Citizenship Division of my Department wrote to all...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Immigration Status (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: The person concerned can use the date of their landing stamp, if their next registered immigration permission is reckonable as qualifying residency as set down in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship 1956 Act.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Visa Applications (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: An application for an extension of student conditions was received from the person referred to by the Deputy on 13 July 2023 and continues to be processed. The Third Level Graduate Programme (Stamp 1G) is designed to allow graduates of Irish universities an opportunity to obtain graduate level employment and an employment permit from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. It...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Visa Applications (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: I can advise the Deputy that the application referred to was created on the 19 July 2023. Supporting documentation was received in the New Delhi office on the 26 July 2023, where it awaits examination and processing. It is not possible to give a definitive date as to when this application will be finalised. All applications are processed in chronological order, based on date order of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Family Support Services (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: The facilitation of contact between a child and their non-resident parent, where safe and appropriate, is central to family life in order to establish and/or build positive child-parent relationships. Expenses arising in the context of the resolution of private family law and other civil disputes are matters for the parties. Child and family services and related policy areas which fall...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: An Garda Síochána (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: Community policing is fundamental to the new Garda Operating Model recommended by the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland and currently being rolled out under 'A Policing Service for Our Future', the Government's implementation plan for the Commission's recommendations. I want to emphasise that community policing is at the heart of An Garda Síochána, and that all...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: An Garda Síochána (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: By way of background, because fireworks are explosives, they are regulated under national and EU legislation and can only be imported into the country under licence and stored and sold in accordance with explosives law. Government policy restricts the availability of all hazardous fireworks to the general public. Licences under the Explosives Act are issued by my Department only for the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Visa Applications (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: I can advise the Deputy that officials from the Visa area of my Department made contact with the person referred to on Friday 15 September 2023, with a view to assisting with their intended travel to the State. In relation to Bolivian nationals who had made plans to travel to Ireland before the visa requirement came into force on 12 September 2023 and who can show evidence of booking and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: An Garda Síochána (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible under Section 26 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended) for the management and administration of Garda business. As Minister I have no role in these independent functions. I am assured by the Garda Commissioner that the health and safety of Gardaí is of paramount and ongoing concern, so all operational...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Prison Service (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: The recruitment of Recruit Prison Officers by the Irish Prison Service has been ongoing since 2017 and has regard to such factors as organisational needs and exit levels. To support the operation of the prison estate and ensure that the organisation can continue to provide important rehabilitative services to those in our care in a safe and secure manner, the Irish Prison Service was...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: An Garda Síochána (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the administration and management of An Garda Síochána, including for the recruitment, training and deployment of Garda members and Garda Staff. As Minister, I have no role in such matters. I can inform the Deputy that there are 65 Garda members...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: An Garda Síochána (20 Sep 2023)

Helen McEntee: The Deputy will be aware that, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána. This includes the management of the Garda Fleet. The allocation of Garda resources is a matter for the Commissioner, in light of identified operational demands. As Minister, I have no role in these...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Citizenship Applications (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: My Department acknowledges that delays in processing times can be very frustrating and disruptive to applicants for naturalisation. The backlogs currently being experienced are an unfortunate legacy of the pandemic when staff could only attend the office in a limited capacity. The paper based nature of the application process means it was very difficult to process files during that time....

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Asylum Applications (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: The table below provides the breakdown of the number of international protection applications recorded between 2019 and to 1st July 2023 by “initial place of application”. Information on how a person enters the country when not through a designated port is not recorded. IP Applications - Place of Application Year of Application IPO Airports ...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Religious Discrimination (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: Articles 12.8, 31.4 and 34.6.1° of the Constitution respectively prescribe the wording of a declaration to be made by a person taking up office as President, as a member of the Council of State, and as a judge. The declarations contain religious references. Any amendment to these provisions would require a referendum.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Data (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 525 and 526 together. I have asked An Garda Sìochàna if it is possible to provide the information request by the Deputy. Unfortunately it has not been possible to confirm this within the timeframe allowed. I will revert to the Deputy with any relevant information upon receipt.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Prevention (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: As I am sure the Deputy appreciates, the restricting of a person’s liberty is a serious issue, given the Constitutional presumption that a person is deemed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. While the State’s bail laws do provide for the refusal of bail in certain circumstances, the presiding Judge is entirely independent in the exercise of their judicial...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legal Aid (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 528, 529, 530 and 531 together. It has not been possible to collate complete information as requested by the Deputy in the time allowed. I will write to the Deputy directly when the information is to hand.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Asylum Seekers (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: Detention of a person refused entry to the State or a person who is subject to a deportation order, is only undertaken as a last resort. The considerations for a detention decision include the level of risk of absconding, whether the person poses a threat to public security, or whether the individual has committed a serious crime. These matters are currently the subject of review in my...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Appointments (13 Jul 2023)

Helen McEntee: The information requested by the Deputy is not held by my Department. The nomination and appointment processes for boards of bodies under the aegis of my Department are set out in legislation. In line with Government Decision S180/20/10/1617 of 2014 and Guidelines set out by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, my Department, in conjunction with the Public...