Results 7,141-7,160 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Overseas Missions (3 Feb 2021)

Simon Coveney: On 25th January 2021, the Council of the EU approved conclusions launching the first pilot case of the Coordinated Maritime Presences (CMP) concept in the Gulf of Guinea as the Maritime Area of Interest and the creation of the Maritime Area of Interest Coordination Cell (MAICC). The Gulf of Guinea continues to face a challenging environment in which piracy, armed robbery at...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Applications (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: The Passport Service has paused processing of routine applications while Ireland is at Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. Passport Service staff have been temporarily reassigned to provide consular assistance for Irish citizens overseas. The Passport Service continues to provide an emergency passport service for Irish citizens at home and abroad. The service is...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: The Passport Service has paused processing of routine applications while Ireland is at Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. Passport Service staff have been temporarily reassigned to provide consular assistance for Irish citizens overseas. The Passport Service continues to provide an emergency passport service for Irish citizens at home and abroad. The service is...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: I have made known for some time my concerns about the overall human rights situation in Turkey. It is an issue which I raised with Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu when I met him for consultations on 27 January. The Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture, in a report it issued in 2019, stated that the restrictions imposed on Abdullah Ocalan and a number of other...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: Ireland remains deeply concerned about the treatment of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, and we are closely following reports related to arbitrary detention, forced labour, forced sterilisations, and restrictions on freedom of religion and belief in the region. The term "genocide" is a term that has a particular meaning under international law, and definitive recognition...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Ministerial Meetings (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: As part of the Government’s commitment to supporting the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement and maintaining strong relationships, I remain in regular contact with the First Minister, deputy First Minister, and other political leaders in Northern Ireland on a range of issues. Most recently, on Monday 11 January, I participated by videoconference in the first Implementation...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Covid-19 Pandemic (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: On the island of Ireland, our shared geography and the cross-border mobility of people means that, in responding to Covid-19, we need to bear in mind the impact of measures on all of our people. There is a need, therefore, for close and ongoing contact North-South and indeed East-West, where possible. North-South contact and cooperation on the island is ongoing at both operational and...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Applications (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: The Passport Service has paused processing of routine applications while Ireland is at Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. Passport Service staff have been temporarily reassigned to provide consular assistance for Irish citizens overseas. The Passport Service continues to provide an emergency passport service for Irish citizens at home and abroad. The service is...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Applications (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: The Passport Service has paused processing of routine applications while Ireland is at Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. Passport Service staff have been temporarily reassigned to provide consular assistance for Irish citizens overseas. The Passport Service continues to provide an emergency passport service for Irish citizens at home and abroad. The service is...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: The Passport Service has paused processing of routine applications while Ireland is at Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. Passport Service staff have been temporarily reassigned to provide consular assistance for Irish citizens overseas. The Passport Service continues to provide an emergency passport service for Irish citizens at home and abroad. The service is...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Ministerial Communications (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: The Programme for Government outlines Ireland's commitment to strengthening bilateral relations with the UK following Brexit, including by deepening Ireland's relationships with the devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales. It further commits to expanding and developing mechanisms for engagement between the Houses of the Oireachtas, the Northern Irish Assembly, the UK Parliament and...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: International Relations (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 130 and 131 together. Ireland is playing its full part as member of the global health community to establish facilities and oversight mechanisms to ensure fair and equitable access to vaccines for all. The World Health Organisation, as the lead UN agency for health, is central to this effort: in recognition of this critical role, Ireland quadrupled support...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Birth Registration (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: My Department is responsible for citizenship by descent through the Foreign Births Register. At present, there are 27,000 applications in the Foreign Births Registration (FBR) system that are awaiting processing. The Passport Service has paused the processing of FBR applications as Ireland is at Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. Applications that have been sent...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: In my statement of 18 January, I joined the EU, US, UK and others in condemning the detention of Alexei Navalny on his return to Moscow on 17 January and I call for his immediate release. Having survived an attempted poisoning on Russian soil, Mr Navalny chose to return home of his own free will. His detention, immediately upon arrival, raises serious questions around the rule of law and...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Undocumented Irish in the USA (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: Strengthening bilateral relations with the US is a priority for Ireland as set out in our Programme for Government,as wellin our Strategy for the US and Canada 2019-2025. We continue to maintain close relations with Members of Congress and contacts from across the political spectrum, and will continue to seek opportunities to deepen and strengthen our bilateral relations with the new...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: International Criminal Court (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: Ireland is a State Party to the Rome Statue and a strong supporter of the International Criminal Court in its capacity as an independent and impartial institution with a key role in the fight against impunity. We believe that, as a court of last resort, the ICC does not substitute for national judicial systems – States bear the primary responsibility to investigate the most serious...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: International Relations (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: I was deeply saddened to hear of the destruction of the Lipa migrant centre in Bosnia and Herzegovina at the end of last year and the vulnerable and unacceptable living conditions for the displaced migrants. The EU has engaged with all actors from the start of this current crisis and for months has called on the authorities to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe. After concerted EU...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Commemorative Medals (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: The relevant military service pension files and associated medal records relating to the period from Easter Week 1916 to 30th September, 1923 are now part of the Military Service Pensions Collection. As part of the Government Centenary Commemoration programme, my Department is cataloguing and digitising the Military Service (1916-1923) Pension Collection so as to make it available on line....

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces Strength (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 138 and 146 together. The table below details the current strength (Whole Time Equivalent) figures of the Permanent Defence Force, as of the 31stDecember 2020, and those of the agreed establishment. Branch Establishment Strength Army 7,520 6,923 Air Corps 886 746 ...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces Data (28 Jan 2021)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 139 and 144 together. The table below outlines the number of vacancies, that exist in the PDF as at 31st December 2020. Vacancies are filled on an ongoing basis in line with promotional arrangements and, in certain cases, direct entry competitions. Vacancies at Private Rank are filled by general service recruitment and direct entry competition. It is...