Results 9,321-9,340 of 15,389 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Staff (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can inform the Deputy that there are currently 1580 members of staff employed by my Department. Currently the highest paid salary in my Department is €205,199.00 for the grade of Secretary General and the second highest paid salary is €187,578.00 for the grade of Deputy Secretary. The various grades of staff employed by my Department are set out in the table below...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Peace Commissioners (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: Peace Commissioners are appointed by the Minister for Justice under Section 88 of the Courts of Justice Act 1924. The Office of Peace Commissioner is an honorary appointment and Peace Commissioners receive no remuneration or compensation by way of fees or expenses for their services. An application for appointment may be made by a person on their own behalf or a nomination for appointment may...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: I have sought the information requested from An Garda Síochána but it was not received in time. I will write to the Deputy when I have received the information.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (8 Mar 2022)

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. 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 independent...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Rights of People with Disabilities (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: Hate crimes are signal crimes. They tell the victim that they are not safe simply because of who they are. They send the disgusting message to victims that they and people like them are somehow lesser than the rest of us which is unacceptable. These crimes are motivated by prejudice. They make victims feel afraid for their future, their friends and their families. They lead to a divided...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Correspondence (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: The issues raised in the Deputy's correspondence were complex and required inputs from a number of areas across my Department. A response will issue to the Deputy in the coming days. I can also confirm to the Deputy that my Department has recently written to the person concerned and they have attended their local immigration office and registered their permission to be in the State.  As...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Domestic Violence (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: I would like to assure the Deputy that I am committed to tackling domestic violence in all its forms, and to ensuring that people, particularly women and vulnerable people, feel safe and are safe in our communities. I am currently leading work on a new whole of Government strategy to combat domestic, sexual, gender-based violence. This new plan will have a particular focus on prevention,...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Naturalisation Applications (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: The application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to by the Deputy is currently being processed with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation and will be submitted to me for decision as expeditiously as possible. In accordance with the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: An Garda Síochána (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 449 to 451, inclusive, together. The Blue Blindfold website was set up in October 2008 by my Department as a medium for the reporting of suspicious activity in the area of Trafficking in Human Beings. There is a dedicated email address blueblindfold@garda.ie and a 24/7 contact number, 1800 666 111 provided on the website. I am advised by the Garda...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Alcohol Sales (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Programme for Government, along with my Department’s Justice Plan, commits to modernising alcohol licensing laws so that they reflect the changing expectations and lifestyles of 21st century Ireland. The issue of outdated alcohol licensing legislation was also a key challenge identified by stakeholders in the published report of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce. I intend...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Prison Service (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: I can advise the Deputy that the collation and publication of the number of prisoners on protection is carried out through the Prison Population Census on a quarterly basis.  The collation of this information is a manual process and therefore requires a considerable amount of time to complete. At present information on ethnicity is not routinely collected as part of this process....

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Crime Prevention (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Deputy will be aware that an all-of-government implementation plan to progress the recommendations in the Review of Structures and Strategies to Prevent, Investigate and Penalise Economic Crime and Corruption was published in April 2021. The plan sets out 22 actions that focus primarily on legislative, structural and resourcing measures to enhance agency and multi-agency enforcement and...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Residency Permits (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: During the Covid19-pandemic I provided nine temporary extension of immigration and international protection permissions to 31 May 2022. The effect of these temporary permissions is that people who held a valid permission to be in the State in March 2020 are legally permitted to remain until 31 May 2022, even if their Irish Residence Permit (IRP) card has expired and they are awaiting a...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Citizenship Applications (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: The application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to by the Deputy is currently being processed with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation and will be submitted to me for decision as expeditiously as possible. The granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Legislative Reviews (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Programme for Government, along with my Department’s Justice Plan, commits to “review and reform defamation laws to ensure a balanced approach to the right to freedom of expression, the right to protection of good name and reputation, and the right of access to justice”. On 1 March, I was pleased to publish the comprehensive Report of the Review of the Defamation Act...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Protected Disclosures (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, the Protected Disclosures Act was enacted in 2014 to allow employees to bring alleged wrongdoing to the attention of the appropriate authorities.  In accordance with Section 22 of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, my Department publishes an Annual Report, on an anonymised basis, in relation to the disclosures received and dealt with under its policy. With...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Wards of Court (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: Management of the courts, operational matters and logistical functions are 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 powers in the Constitution. The Courts Service has a dedicated email address for the provision of information to members of the Houses of the The...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Deportation Orders (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: In light of current circumstances, I have suspended all cases involving possible deportations to Ukraine. The Deputy will no doubt appreciate that the current situation is extremely fluid and I am monitoring the situation in the region closely. I can assure the Deputy that the safety of individuals affected, or potentially affected, by these  terrible events is of paramount concern...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Travel Documents (8 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: The Travel Document Unit in the Immigration Service Delivery area of my Department processes travel documents for people who are deemed to be refugees under the 1951 United Nations Convention. This Unit also processes a separate travel document for resettled programme refugees and beneficiaries of other humanitarian and family reunification programmes. Processing times were unfortunately...

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Visa Agreements (3 Mar 2022)

Helen McEntee: On Friday the 25th of February I announced the immediate lifting of visa requirements between Ukraine and Ireland. This will streamline and support the swift exit of both the Ukrainian family members of Irish citizens, and the family members of people from Ukraine who are resident in Ireland. It will apply as an emergency measure to all Ukrainians travelling to Ireland. The...