Results 11,321-11,340 of 19,162 for speaker:Alan Shatter

Written Answers — Employment Rights: Employment Rights (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: As already announced in the Public Service Reform Plan published by the Government on 17 November 2011, the Government has decided to rationalise the industrial relations / employee rights institutions into a single agency. Under this plan the Equality Tribunal will form part of a new Workplace Relations body. Detailed consideration of the practical arrangements to give effect to this...

Written Answers — Prison Accommodation: Prison Accommodation (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: As the Deputy is aware there has been a consistent increase in the total prisoner population in Ireland over recent years. The problem of prison overcrowding therefore remains a challenging issue which unfortunately cannot be resolved overnight. Given the current number of prisoners in the system - 4,401 on 3rd May 2012 - the Irish Prison Service is not in a position to provide single cell...

Written Answers — Criminal Gangs: Criminal Gangs (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: The emergence in recent years of criminal gangs has had significant implications for the management of Irish prisons. Prison management must ensure that the various factions are kept apart and as far as possible, that gang members do not have influence over other inmates or criminal activities outside the prisons. Gang members are being managed on a daily basis through segregation and...

Written Answers — Legal Aid Service: Legal Aid Service (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: I wish to inform the Deputy that details of waiting times for non-prioritised matters at each of the Legal Aid Board's law centres as at 1 April 2012 are set out below. Figures for 1 May 2012 are not available yet. I acknowledge that waiting times have increased since the downturn in the economy and that there has been a very significant increase in demand for the Board's services. The...

Written Answers — Garda Strength: Garda Strength (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: I am conscious of the importance of maintaining a sufficient strength in the senior ranks to support the investigative, management and supervisory capacity of the Force. As I made clear in my recent address to the Annual Conference of the Association of Garda Superintendents, I am in ongoing discussion with my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform on this matter and I...

Written Answers — Criminal Gangs: Criminal Gangs (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: In the course of previous contributions in this House I have made it clear that combating the activities of criminal gangs is a major Garda priority. In that context the Deputy will recall that significant resources are being deployed against gangs by An Garda Síochána and this will continue to be the case. The Deputy will be aware that the Garda Commissioner has recently announced the...

Written Answers — Immigration Policy: Immigration Policy (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: The Government's plans for the immigration system are outlined in the Programme for Government which commits to the introduction of comprehensive reforms to the immigration, residence and asylum systems including a statutory immigration appeals mechanism, which will articulate rights and obligations in a transparent manner. The Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill 2010 was restored to...

Written Answers — Debt Resolution: Debt Resolution (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: The Personal Insolvency Bill, the Heads of which I published on 25 January, 2012, introduces a number of new non-judicial debt settlement systems. One of those systems - the Personal Insolvency Arrangement - provides for the agreed settlement of both secured and unsecured debt of €20,001 to €3 million with one or more creditors. The detail of the proposed personal insolvency reform...

Written Answers — Prison Rehabilitative Programmes: Prison Rehabilitative Programmes (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: I can advise the Deputy that there were 4,380 prisoners in custody on 2 May, 2012. As the Deputy will be aware from my replies to previous Parliamentary Questions, the Irish Prison Service provides a wide range of rehabilitative programmes that include education, vocational training, health care, psychiatric, psychological, counselling, welfare and spiritual services. These programmes are...

Written Answers — Garda Stations: Garda Stations (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: As the Deputy is aware, the Commissioner's Policing Plan for 2012, which I laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas on 5 December 2011, proposed the closure of 39 Garda Stations throughout the country, along with reduced public opening hours in 10 Garda Stations in the Dublin Metropolitan Region. Of the 39 stations, 8 were already non-operational, some for many years. Others, while...

Written Answers — EU Directives: EU Directives (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: My Department has completed work on draft Heads of a Bill to transpose Council Directive 2010/18/EU and to consolidate all the various family leave legislation (maternity, paternal, adoptive and carer's leave) in one Bill. The draft Heads are currently under discussion with relevant Departments in relation to technical issues (e.g. updating references to other legislation) and I expect that...

Written Answers — Garda Strength: Garda Strength (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: As the Deputy is aware, the moratorium on Public Service recruitment continues to apply to An Garda Síochána. A s a result, no date has been fixed for future intakes into the Garda College or for the commencement of a recruitment competition. A decision on when recruitment will re-commence will take into account the rate of retirement in the Garda Síochána and Government targets for...

Written Answers — Drugs in Prisons: Drugs in Prisons (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: I do not have any plans for the construction of a custodial drug treatment centre. However, as outlined in the Irish Prison Service Three Year Strategic Plan 2012 - 2015, Drug Free Units will be introduced in all closed prisons. It is intended that each of those prisons will have a Drug Free Unit by the end of 2012. Drug Free Units will accommodate and cater for the needs of both drug...

Written Answers — Crime Prevention: Crime Prevention (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: I am, of course, concerned at the increase in number of burglaries in 2011, while noting that for most crime groups, including robbery, the most recent statistics indicate a decline in recorded crime. All crime trends are monitored closely by Garda management, with intelligence-led initiatives put in place to target burglary and other criminality. The Deputy will be aware that the Garda...

Written Answers — Prison Staff: Prison Staff (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: I am informed by the Irish Prison Service that the information requested by the Deputy is not readily available and requires a manual examination of records. The Information is being collated by the Irish Prison Service and I will forward a reply to the Deputy as soon possible.

Written Answers — Prison Staff: Prison Staff (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: It is not possible, in the time available, to collate the information requested by the Deputy. I will furnish the information to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Health Service Investigations: Health Service Investigations (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: The Deputy has raised a number of matters not all of which fall within my responsibility. Under the Child Care Act 1991, responsibility for promoting the welfare of children lies with the Health Service Executive. Responsibility for the investigation of any alleged criminal offence is a matter for the Garda Síochána. In the context of the making of false allegations, it is an offence...

Written Answers — Visa Applications: Visa Applications (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: The person concerned has had his temporary permission to remain in the State renewed for a further two year period, until 11 April, 2014. This decision was conveyed to the person concerned by letter dated 24 April, 2012. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically...

Written Answers — Proposed Legislation: Proposed Legislation (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: The position is that section 2 of the Landlord and Tenant (Ground Rents) Act 1978 introduced a prohibition on the creation of new leases reserving ground rents on dwellings. As regards existing ground rents, Part III of the Landlord and Tenant (Ground Rents) (No. 2) Act 1978 contains a statutory scheme whereby any person may, at reasonable cost, acquire the fee simple in his or her dwelling...

Written Answers — Sexual Offences: Sexual Offences (8 May 2012)

Alan Shatter: Under the Sex Offenders Act 2001, a convicted sex offender is required to notify his name and home address to the Garda Síochána within 7 days of becoming subject to the notification requirement. This notification period applies whether the person is resident in the State or was convicted of a relevant offence in another jurisdiction and subsequently enters this State. Sexual offences for...