Results 8,661-8,680 of 21,096 for speaker:Charles Flanagan

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Retirements (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: Retirement of members of An Garda Síochána is governed by statutory provisions which set the mandatory retirement age for all members at 60 years of age.  Members of An Garda Síochána who joined the organisation prior to 1 April 2004 may retire on full pension once they have served for at least 30 years and they have reached 50 years of age.  Members of An Garda...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Deployment (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 30 and 62 together. As the Deputy will appreciate, it is the Garda Commissioner who is responsible for the distribution of resources, including personnel, among the various Garda Divisions and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Reform (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: Firstly let me say that I am pleased that the rigorous selection process conducted by the Public Appointments Service (PAS) on behalf of the Policing Authority has come to a successful conclusion with the recent decision by Government to appoint Mr. Drew Harris as the next Garda Commissioner. Mr Harris will take up office for a period of five years commencing in September. This is the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Road Traffic Offences (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: The issue of misuse of scramblers and quad bikes is one that is taken very seriously by the Government. The Deputy is already aware that my officials convened a cross-agency meeting on the misuse of scramblers and quad bikes on 25 April 2018. Represented at the meeting were the Departments of Transport, Tourism and Sport; Housing, Planning and Local Government; and Culture, Heritage and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Deployment (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As the Deputy will appreciate, it is the Garda Commissioner who is responsible for the distribution of resources, including personnel, among the various Garda Divisions and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the optimum use is...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Procedures (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As the Deputy is aware, there are great sensitivities and trauma associated with the removal of a child from their parent or legal guardian. However, Section 12 of the Child Care Act 1991 is an essential legal mechanism through which the Garda Síochána performs its child protection function, and it is only used as a measure of last resort. It is important to recognise that the...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Asylum Applications Data (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: I am obliged by law to keep information on asylum applicants confidential and it is an offence to identify a person that has applied for international protection in Ireland.  It is in that context that I cannot provide the information sought by the Deputy as it could potentially lead to the identification of protection applicants. If an application for asylum or subsidiary...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Misconduct Allegations (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: The Deputy's question refers to five statutory inquiries which arose out of the recommendations of Counsel of the Independent Review Mechanism. These inquiries were established on 15 May 2017 under Section 42 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005. A retired judge was appointed to conduct each of these inquiries and the Orders establishing the inquiries prescribe that on...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Insurance Fraud (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: Recommendation 26 of the ‘Report on the Cost of Motor Insurance’, published in January 2017, relates to exploring the potential for further cooperation between the insurance sector and An Garda Síochána in relation to insurance fraud investigation. Specifically, this involves considering the feasibility of establishing a specialised and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Immigrant Investor Programme Administration (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: The Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) was introduced by the Government in April 2012 to encourage inward investment for the creation of business and employment opportunities in the State. The programme provides non-EEA national investors with options to invest in Ireland. The criteria for the programme are that the investments are beneficial for Ireland, generate or sustain employment and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Deployment (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As the Deputy will appreciate, it is the Garda Commissioner who is responsible for the distribution of resources, including personnel, among the various Garda Divisions and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the optimum use is...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: EU Directives (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: I wish to advise the Deputy that the Government is currently considering the matter of opting into the Regulation in question. The question of opting into the Directive does not arise due to its legal bases (Articles 53 and 62 TFEU) which differs from that of the Regulation (Article 82(1) TFEU). The Directive is binding on all Member States and Ireland cannot avail of an opt...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Asylum Applications Data (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: Based on the most recently available information, the statistics requested by the Deputy are outlined as follows. 2015 2016 2017 2018 (to 31 May) No. of persons Refused Asylum 1074 2169 985 967 No. of Deportations (on foot of refusal of asylum) 175 356 99 37 Please note the following: The 2015 and 2016 figures on the number of persons who were refused asylum (refugee status)...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prisoner Releases (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: I am advised by the Irish Prison Service that there have been no discussions with departmental officials regarding the handling of the investigation into this matter. 

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Deployment (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As the Deputy will appreciate, it is the Garda Commissioner who is responsible for the distribution of resources, including personnel, among the various Garda Divisions and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the optimum use is...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Deployment (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As the Deputy will appreciate, it is the Garda Commissioner who is responsible for the distribution of personnel, among the various Garda Divisions and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution of personnel under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the optimum use is made of these...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Protected Disclosures Data (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As the Deputy is aware, the Protected Disclosures Act came into effect on 15 July 2014. In relation to members of An Garda Síochána, the introduction of that Act replaced the previous system of making disclosures to a Confidential Recipient.  The Act was part of the then Government's comprehensive approach to enhancing the protections available to whistle-blowers,...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Judicial Appointments (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: The Deputy will be aware that I have already answered written questions on related matters in this House on the 3rd of July. GRECO recently produced a Fourth Round Evaluation Interim Compliance Report in relation to Ireland, on 22 June 2018 following the GRECO 80th Plenary meeting held in Strasbourg on 18-22 June. This Report had been produced in earlier drafts and we had been given...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Levels (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As I stated last week when the latest crime statistics were released by the CSO, I am disappointed to see the slight increase in burglary and theft offences nationally for Q1 2018 when compared to the same period in 2017, however, let me assure the Deputy that this Government remains committed to helping An Garda Síochána tackle all forms of criminality in our communities. The...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Garda Data (5 Jul 2018)

Charles Flanagan: As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the distribution of resources, including civilian personnel and sworn members, among the various Garda Divisions and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the...