Results 10,081-10,100 of 18,752 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Written Answers — Deportation Orders: Deportation Orders (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I refer the Deputy to the Reply I gave to Dáil Question No. 709 of 26 January 2005, No. 456 of 4 October 2005, No. 410 of 13 December 2005 and No. 570 of 21 February 2006. Since then, the person concerned has presented himself to the Garda National Immigration Bureau on a number of occasions and is due to present again on 8 June 2006. The acquisition of travel documents for the person...

Written Answers — Courts Service: Courts Service (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: Section 4 of the Courts and Courts Officers Act 1995 provides that, upon commencement, cases currently dealt with by the Court of Criminal Appeal would be transferred to the Supreme Court. In 2003, the Working Group on the Jurisdiction of the Courts, which was chaired by Mr. Justice Fennelly, published a report which, inter alia, recommended against the abolition of the Court of Criminal...

Written Answers — Asylum Applications: Asylum Applications (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: The person referred to by the Deputy arrived in Ireland on 20 May 1999 and claimed asylum. His case was examined by the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner who recommended to me in February 2001 that he be granted refugee status. The applicant was subsequently convicted of people trafficking in the Dublin District Court in April 2001 for which he received a four months prison...

Written Answers — Garda Recruitment: Garda Recruitment (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have been informed by the Garda authorities, who are responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the personnel strength (all ranks) of An Garda Síochána as at 31 March 2006 was 12,439. This compares with a total strength of 10,702 (all ranks) as at 30 June 1997 and represents an increase of 1,737 (or 16.2%) in the personnel strength of the Force during...

Written Answers — Gambling Casinos: Gambling Casinos (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I propose to take Questions Nos. 491 to 494, inclusive, together. Public policy in the matter of casino gambling in Ireland is as set out in the Gaming and Lotteries Acts. These Acts prohibit casino-type operations, and I am strongly of the view that there should be no departure from settled policy in this area. It is my view that casinos are socially undesirable and I think that is the view...

Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have been informed by officials in the Citizenship Section of my Department that there is no record of an application for Irish citizenship through the process of naturalisation having been received from the person referred to by the Deputy.

Written Answers — Prison Staff: Prison Staff (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: A response has been given to all queries received in relation to the promotion competition for Prison Officers. The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has consulted with the firm of Occupational Psychologists involved in running these tests on the concerns raised by candidates and is satisfied that a re-sit of the test is not warranted. The concern regarding the sequence of pages in the exam in...

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I can inform the Deputy that a wide and evolving range of public bodies are associated with my Department or come within its general aegis. The table sets out those appendixed to my Department's Strategy Statement for 2005-2007. The nature of the Department's relationship with each body varies according to its function and statutory basis, as appropriate. Information concerning the...

Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: Applications for certificates of naturalisation are generally dealt with in chronological order and this practice is not deviated from except in exceptional circumstances. Officials in Citizenship Section are currently processing applications received in the first quarter of 2004 and, at the present time, there are approximately 7,000 applications awaiting processing before that of the person...

Written Answers — Visa Applications: Visa Applications (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: The application referred to by the Deputy was received in the Visa Office in Moscow on 25th April, 2006. The decision of the Visa Officer to refuse this application was taken on 28th April, 2006. An appeal in respect of this application was received in Moscow on 25th May, 2006 and is awaiting examination by a Visa Appeals Officer. A decision is expected shortly.

Written Answers — Registration of Title: Registration of Title (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I propose to take Questions Nos. 501 to 504, inclusive, together. I refer the Deputy to my reply to Questions Nos. 708 to 711, inclusive, of 25 April, 2006. The position remains unchanged since that date.

Written Answers — Road Traffic Offences: Road Traffic Offences (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am informed by the Garda authorities that Traffic Watch is a dedicated telephone line that allows responsible road users to report any incidents of bad or dangerous driving offences they have witnessed. It is operated by An Garda Síochána at dedicated call centres located in six centres throughout the country. Traffic Watch commenced on 18 February 2004. The Traffic Watch telephone number...

Written Answers — Crime Levels: Crime Levels (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am informed by the Garda authorities that the information sought by the Deputy is not readily available in the format requested. To collate the information would require a disproportionate expenditure of Garda time and resources.

Written Answers — Garda Strength: Garda Strength (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have been informed by the Garda authorities, who are responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the personnel strength (all ranks) of An Garda Síochána as at 31 March 2006 was 12,439. This compares with a total strength of 10,702 (all ranks) as at 30 June 1997 and represents an increase of 1,737 (or 16.2%) in the personnel strength of the Force during...

Written Answers — Garda Communications: Garda Communications (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: The amount paid to mobile phone providers for the past 2 years in respect of the use of official Garda mobile phones from the Garda Vote is as follows: 2004 €112,202 (of this €111,902 was paid to Vodafone and €100 to Meteor) 2005 €82,730 (paid to Vodafone). In addition, a sum of €1,119,924 was offset against licence income received by the OPW in respect...

Written Answers — Garda Operations: Garda Operations (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I regret that it has not been possible in the time available to obtain the information requested by the Deputy. I will be in touch with the Deputy in relation to this matter when it becomes available.

Written Answers — Registration of Title: Registration of Title (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I wish to inform the Deputy that I have requested the Land Registry to contact him directly concerning the current position of the application in question.

Written Answers — Closed Circuit Television Systems: Closed Circuit Television Systems (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am informed by the Garda authorities that since 2002 Garda CCTV systems have been installed in Bray, Dundalk, Dún Laoghaire, Galway and Limerick. The installation of a CCTV system in Finglas has been delayed due to the lack of suitable accommodation to house the monitoring equipment. I am advised by the Office of Public Works that a suitable premises is currently being evaluated in...

Written Answers — Human Trafficking: Human Trafficking (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: I propose to take Questions Nos. 512 and 513 together. I would refer the Deputy to the replies to parliamentary questions nos. 117 and 141 tabled for answer on 24 May, 2005. These explain the context of a recent meeting between my colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and his Polish counterpart and planned meetings between the Minister and his Lithuanian and Latvian colleagues. The...

Written Answers — Residency Permits: Residency Permits (30 May 2006)

Michael McDowell: Non-EEA nationals who have permission to remain in the State as students are entitled to take up casual employment (defined as up to 20 hours per week during school term and up to 40 hours per week during school holidays) for the duration of their permission to remain. The entitlement to take up employment ceases upon the expiry of their permission to remain as a student. There is no...