Results 10,641-10,660 of 18,761 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: Deputy Howlin is in the shouting down business again.

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: Deputy O'Keeffe only had one supplementary question, but what a supplementary it was.

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: The number of headline crimes when Deputy Howlin was at the Cabinet table exceeds the current number——

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: ——with a population of 3.6 million then and 4.1 million now. The number of gardaí was allowed to drop when the rainbow coalition was in office and I and my predecessor, Deputy O'Donoghue, have increased the number of gardaí substantially.

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: The resources of the Garda Síochána have never risen faster than they are rising at present and the number of crimes per 1,000 of population has come down from 29.6 at the time——

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: ——the rainbow coalition was in office to 24 per 1,000 of population now. Those are the facts.

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: The table is set out in the reply which I will furnish here today.

Crime Prevention. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: No amount of bluster, filibustering, heckling or anything else changes those facts.

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: The provision in the Garda Síochána Act 2005 for the establishment of a Garda reserve won widespread support in the House, although the Deputy and his colleagues opposed it.

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: No, I am taking Deputy Howlin's separately.

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: I did not want to put Deputy Howlin into the same category as Deputy Ó Snodaigh.

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: In giving effect to the will of the Oireachtas, I am committed to real and substantial consultation. I have met each of the garda representative associations to discuss the Garda reserve. I have also invited them in for more detailed discussions on the Garda Commissioner's proposals on the recruitment, training, powers, duties and deployment of reserve members. The chief superintendents have...

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: ——to bring them before the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights and have a good discussion with all Members of the House who are interesting in discussing their substance at that venue. Additional information not given on the floor of the House. There is no obligation under the Garda Síochána Act to do so, as the regulations simply require the approval of...

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: Deputy Ó Snodaigh spoke of NGOs representing the community. As far as I am concerned, I suppose the Government parties are GOs — governmental organisations — for the time being but the Opposition parties are NGOs. The Opposition parties are non-governmental organisations which have a mandate from the people to speak on these matters. They have spoken with considerable clarity on the...

Garda Deployment. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: Since the formation of the State, Governments of every stripe have been slow, if not dilatory, in civilianising non-core policing functions. We have come late to the process compared with other European police jurisdictions. As the Hayes report into the Garda Síochána Act 2005 implementation review group stated: We are concerned that the rate of civilianisation in the Garda Síochána is...

Garda Deployment. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: The agreement arrived at in 2001 prior to my appointment provided for civilianisation of 496 posts over 20 years, with only 27 to be civilianised between then and now. At my request, 300 surplus posts in the Department of Agriculture and Food are to be transferred to my Department to assist with the civilianisation programme. The first phase took place in recent months with the establishment...

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: In July 2005, as part of a submission on the future resourcing requirements of the Garda, the Garda Commissioner proposed the recruitment of up to 4,000 reserve members, as provided for in the Garda Síochána Act 2005, and an increase in the force's strength from 14,000 to 15,000. In response, and in the context of identifying policing priorities for inclusion in the Garda policing plan for...

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: I did not make such a commitment. I dealt with this issue the last time I was in the House for question time. At the time the draft heads of the Bill were being published, there was a Government freeze on any further recruitment to the Garda Síochána above 12,200. I told the AGSI that I would never use a reserve as a substitute to arrive at the 14,000 member mark, which was promised in the...

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have ambitions which might go beyond that.

Garda Reserve. (27 Apr 2006)

Michael McDowell: I did not give the AGSI an undertaking that I would resign at the end of this Government's term.