Results 12,561-12,580 of 12,596 for speaker:Willie O'Dea

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: I understand the Senator's concerns and will consider the matter further to see if the wording of the provision can be improved.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: I thank the Senator for tabling these amendments. The difficulty is that some states will accept communications and requests from the Garda Commissioner while others will not. Section 2 provides that the Commissioner will be the competent authority in Ireland for the purposes of the Bill but that where the competent authority of another member state requires that requests in relation to the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: As drafted, section 5 provides that a joint investigation team shall be established for a specific purpose and a limited period. Where necessary, that period may be extended for an additional period or periods as agreed by the competent authorities concerned. All countries involved in a joint investigation will have to agree to the extension. The amendment proposed seeks to allow the period...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: The deployment of gardaí and the assigning of tasks to them are matters for the Garda Commissioner. As the Senator rightly points out, while we are in about third place in Europe in the ratio of gardaí to the population, there is a perception that there is a scarcity of officers. The Government believes we can use more gardaí. I take the Senator's point in that regard. Gardaí constitute a...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: Investigating and detecting crime costs money. In this situation, the competent authority, namely the Garda Commissioner, provides the initiative to set up the joint investigation team. We cannot introduce something into domestic law which compels competent authorities in other countries to calculate costs in advance. The Garda Commissioner will calculate costs and ensure taxpayers' money is...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: I do not disagree with some of the Senator's sentiments. The question of increasing the number of gardaí is a separate one. I agree that we would benefit from having more gardaí. The Government has certain commitments in that regard, which have been the subject of recent controversy. The commitment in the election manifesto and the programme for Government, as I recall it, was to provide...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: This is a tricky area. Section 5(4) allows the State to join a joint investigation team which has already been established on such terms and conditions as the Irish competent authority may agree with the competent authorities of the member states involved in the original establishment of the team. In other words, under this section the team has already been set up. The effect of the proposed...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: I take the Senator's point. There seem to be no criteria to guide the competent authority of the State in deciding whether to join a joint investigation team which has already been set up. I will ask the chief parliamentary counsel to reconsider this between now and Report Stage. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. Section 5 agreed to. SECTION 6.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: This amendment would provide for an additional category of person to be appointed as a member of a joint investigation team, namely, a non-Garda CAB officer. However, having examined the amendment, I am a little lost about the purpose behind it. Section 6(2), as drafted, allows the Minister to appoint to a joint investigation team officers of customs and excise, the Revenue Commissioners, any...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: I understand what the Senator is saying. Section 6 deals with membership of a joint team and provides that members of the Garda Síochána, officers of the Customs and Excise, officers of the Revenue Commissioners and officers of any other Minister may be assigned or appointed to a joint team. In addition, section 6(2)(c) allows the Minister to appoint any other person who, in his or her...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: The public service, excellent though it may be, is not the sole repository of wisdom, experience and expertise. In complex fraud investigations, we may need to bring in representatives of some of the top accountancy firms. In cases of trafficking of children for sexual or other reasons, we may have to bring in representatives of the authorities in other countries, such as Albania, where such...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: Section 10 amends the Garda Síochána Act 1989 by adding joint investigation teams to the list of overseas organisations or units with which a member of the Garda Síochána may serve. The proposed amendment seeks to further amend that Act by providing that it should explicitly state that the Garda disciplinary regulations apply to gardaí referred to in section 3 of the Garda Síochána Act...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: I take the point of the analogy the Senator seeks to make between the Bill and the Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill. However, the fundamental difference between the two is that under the Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill, members of the Police Service of Northern Ireland seconded here will, to all intents and purposes, become members of the Garda Síochána. They will be...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Joint Investigation Teams) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (20 May 2003)

Willie O'Dea: There will be a grievance because seconded members will be subject to disciplinary procedures. In the debate on the previous amendment it was seen that geography is no limitation to the Commissioner's authority where discipline of members of the Garda Síochána is concerned. The same applies to other police forces, especially the other 24 with which we will be co-operating.

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (9 Apr 2003)

Willie O'Dea: I am sorry that the Senator's amendment was ruled out of order. It was not my decision but was a ruling by the Clerk. I understand the ruling is based on article 88 of Standing Orders, the relevant part of which states, "No amendment shall be proposed which is in conflict with the principle of the Bill, as read a second time." The view taken, apparently, is that the amendment proposed does...

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (9 Apr 2003)

Willie O'Dea: There is nothing wrong with the amendment but the reason I will not insert it in the Bill is that, strictly speaking, it is not necessary. It is clear from the provisions of section 3(1) that a member of the Police Service of Northern Ireland seconded to the Garda Síochána and appointed in accordance with this section is appointed to a rank in the Garda Síochána. I will read the full text...

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (9 Apr 2003)

Willie O'Dea: Perhaps the Senator has a point but, strictly speaking, it may not be necessary to make it clearer as we are making it clear that the person appointed shall be under the full direction and control of the Commissioner because up to the point of secondment, they will have been under the control and direction of the Chief Constable. It was considered necessary by the parliamentary counsel to...

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (9 Apr 2003)

Willie O'Dea: What the Senator seeks is not unreasonable. However, it is not regarded as a matter for primary legislation, in the context of appointment to a rank in the Garda Síochana under this section, to provide for the composition of the selection board or interview panel. That is a matter which can be provided for, as appropriate, by regulation. The amendment, as proposed, is to include a new...

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (9 Apr 2003)

Willie O'Dea: Section 3(2) provides specifically that the ranks in the Garda Síochána to which members coming from the North may be appointed under this section, and the number of such members to be appointed, may be proscribed. In other words, it will be dealt with in regulations which obviously will be drafted in the light of discussion between the police services on both sides of the Border and...

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Police Co-Operation) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (9 Apr 2003)

Willie O'Dea: Section 10 of the 1924 Act states members of the Garda Síochana are not to resign without permission while section 11 deals with the duty of members of the Garda Síochana on resignation or dismissal. Section 14 of the Police Forces Amalgamation Act 1925 states: The Minister may from time to time subject to the approval of the Executive Council, make regulations in relation to all or any of...