Results 11,941-11,960 of 18,761 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Written Answers — Sentencing Policy: Sentencing Policy (7 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: The Criminal Justice (Community Service) Act 1983 provides for the performance of unpaid work in the community by a person who is 16 years or over, who has been convicted of an offence for which the appropriate penalty would be an immediate custodial sentence and who has given his or her consent to the court. It has not been the practice for individuals on community service orders to...

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1, 2 and 4 together.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: I will deal with all the issues.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: It is absurd to state that there has been a dramatic increase in headline crime for 2005 when the level of headline crime for 2005 is 4.4% lower than the level for 2002. I did not hear the Opposition Deputies state that there was a dramatic fall in headline crime when there was a decrease of 3% recorded for 2003 and a further decrease of 4% in 2004 compared with 2003. Since I took the...

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: I welcome, however, the significant decrease of 27% in the number of incidents of robbery of cash and goods in transit, down from 62 in 2004 to 45 in 2005. This trend improved in the fourth quarter, with a decrease of 47%. Operation Delivery, an initiative undertaken by the Garda Síochána to counteract the increase in cash in transit robberies which emerged in 2004 has contributed...

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: It will arise again in Question No. 5.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: Of course, I regard crime as serious. However, the phrases used in the questions to which I was replying, that there had been a dramatic increase and that crime was spiralling, are simply not true. Since 2000, the numbers have gone down both in absolute and relative terms. They are significantly down per head of population. I simply made that point. My second point relates to responses to...

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: Recruitment has been increased and proper provisions have been made in Templemore for this. Class sizes vary between 275 and 300 to bring us up to the 14,000 as promised. This will be delivered by the Government. The Garda Síochána Vote this year increased by 13%, at a time of 3% inflation or less. That is a significant increase in resources. This was on top of an increase last year and the...

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: I will deal with the last point first. If I was to split the Bill into different parts, we would require long Second Stage debates on each part. As the Deputy appreciates, that would guarantee no progress would be made in the lifetime of this Dáil on these important matters.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: There are now more than 12,200 fully attested members of the Garda Síochána. This is a significant increase over the numbers ——

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: If the Deputy wants to interrupt, let the record show that when Fine Gael and the Labour Party were in Government, they allowed the numbers of gardaí to fall.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: Let it also show that they never delivered reform to the Garda, never put in place measures to deliver a decent radio system——

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: ——never provided money for prisons and allowed the revolving door revolve so fast that 20% of prisoners were on temporary release. That is the shameful record of the rainbow coalition on law and order. I will not listen to people making specious comparisons.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: The number of offences being committed — the Deputy made a comparison with the 2000 figures — is less than when his party was in Government——

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: ——in 1995, when we had a much smaller population.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: Let the figures show that the coalition's record was abject. It was run out of office because it was so poor at handling the issues.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: That the coalition was thrown out of office in 1997 was a kick in the pants for it. The coalition proved conclusively over a long period that it should not be trusted with the criminal justice system.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: That is just waffle.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have not heard one sensible suggestion from the Labour Party on this question in the time I have been Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Crime Levels. (2 Feb 2006)

Michael McDowell: The Labour Party opposed increasing garda numbers in the 1997 and 2002 general election campaigns.