Results 7,341-7,360 of 15,389 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic Violence (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 47 and 74 together. I'm informed by Tusla that a group involving local stakeholders, including the Laois Domestic Abuse Service, has been established to take forward plans to develop the proposed refuge and associated support services. Planning is not yet sufficiently advanced to identify the specific amount of either capital or revenue funding...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Road Traffic Offences (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Deputy will be aware that the development and implementation of road traffic legislation and policy, including the Government's Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030, and the promotion and advancement of road safety, falls within the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Transport. An Garda Síochána plays a vital role in enforcing road traffic law and in making our roads safer for...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Personal Injury Claims (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: Insurance reform is a key priority for this Government and is reflected in the Programme for Government, the Government’s Action Plan for Insurance Reform, and in my Justice Plan 2022. This is a whole-of-Government effort. My Department has responsibility or part responsibility for 34 of the 66 actions contained in the Action Plan, 26 of which are now complete, including the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Judicial Appointments (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: It is a priority for my Department to ensure that the courts are resourced to administer justice efficiently and effectively for citizens in their access to justice. The Government endeavours to fill judicial vacancies at the earliest opportunity, and a number of such vacancies have been filled recently. In order to bring more strategic focus to this, I established a Judicial Planning Working...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Prevention (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 51 and 61 together. As previously advised, I very much welcome the publication of the 'Ballymun - a Brighter Future' report which was commissioned by Dublin City Council following a request by the Deputy when he was the Lord Mayor of Dublin. The key recommendations of this report recognise that working with communities to address underlying causes of...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Prevention (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: Community safety is about people being safe and feeling safe within their communities. Ireland is generally regarded as a safe country in international terms, with relatively low crime rates and a general feeling of safety and security. However, we recognise that this is not the case in every community and that people living in some areas can experience a different reality. A community...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs, with the unprecedented allocation provided in Budget 2023 of €2.14 billion. As the Deputy will be aware, in accordance with the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána,...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Data Protection (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Programme for Government clearly commits to ‘Recognise the domestic and international importance of data protection in Ireland.’ Delivering on this commitment means supporting and resourcing the DPC to deal with an ever increasing workload with increasingly complex investigative requirements. On 27 July 2022, the government approved the commencement of the process to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Courts Service (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: It is a priority for my Department to ensure that the courts are resourced to administer justice efficiently and effectively for citizens in their access to justice. The Deputy may be aware that management of the courts is the responsibility of the judiciary and Courts Service, which are independent in exercising their functions under the Courts Service Act 1998 and given the separation of...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs, with the unprecedented budget of over €2 billion for 2022 and €2.14 billion for 2023. Since 2016 the budget for An Garda Síochána has increased by approximately €586m, or 38%. I am informed by the Garda authorities that the table below, which has been provided to...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Prevention (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Government is acutely aware of the substantial and ongoing damage that drug dealing and drug-related intimidation has on communities across the country. Organised criminal activity, including drug dealing, represents a serious threat to community safety. An Garda Síochána continues to target those involved in the sale and supply of illegal drugs including through Operation...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Deputy will appreciate that the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána, including provision of Garda training. I am, however advised that the Garda Driver Training Section provides a range of driving courses to meet the operational demands of the organisation across a wide range of vehicles. Two training centres are in...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Sentencing Policy (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, the judiciary, as the third branch of Government, are independent in the matter of sentencing, subject only to the Constitution and the law. However, it is a matter for the Government and the Oireachtas to propose and enact legislation which sets out the maximum sentence which a court can impose for a particular crime. In a number of cases the Oireachtas has...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legislative Measures (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: Trespass is a civil wrong and, for the most part, falls to be addressed by means of a civil remedy. Trespass may be dealt with under criminal law in certain circumstances and a range of offences are provided for in legislation. There is already robust legislation in place in relation to trespass and I have, therefore, no plans to change the law in this regard, but the situation will be...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Antisocial Behaviour (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: I would like to begin by making one thing clear, anyone who engages in anti-social behaviour will face the full rigours of the law and we will not leave any community in fear or danger. The Programme for Government commits to tackling anti-social behaviour by ensuring more visible community policing, in line with the Report of the Future of Policing. This will significantly reduce antisocial...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Deputy is already aware that I consider the deliberate ramming of Garda vehicles to be an extremely serious matter. The safety of the members of An Garda Síochána and the general public on our roads is of critical importance. Any attack on a member of An Garda Síochána is an affront to our values as a society and will not be tolerated. An Garda Síochána...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the general management and administration of the Garda organisation under the Garda Síochána Act 2005. This includes the deployment of Garda members throughout the State. The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs, with the unprecedented allocation...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Antisocial Behaviour (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: Fireworks, because they are explosives, 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 importation of...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: While the Garda Commissioner is operationally responsible for the Garda fleet, I am assured that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources, including vehicles, under continual review. This is considered in the context of crime trends and policing priorities, to ensure the optimum use of these resources. Budget 2023 provides funding of €2.14 billion for An Garda...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (20 Oct 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Government's commitment to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs is underscored by the unprecedented €2.14 billion allocated under Budget 2023. This level of funding supports the planned recruitment of up to 1,000 new Garda members and an additional 400 Garda Staff in 2023. As the Deputy is aware, while recruitment and training of new Garda...