Results 12,881-12,900 of 15,536 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (3 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: When we refer to "or otherwise", it is only with regard to section 31A(7) of the Health Act 1947. The penal provisions have been signed into law and have been published by the Department of Health. They are clear for people to see. The "or otherwise" cannot refer to anything outside of those specific penal provisions that have been approved and have come before the Dáil, which are now...

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (3 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: To clarify, if we take the two lines separately - I think the Deputy accepts that the first line needs to be included - the purpose of giving a direction under section 31A(7) of the 1947 Act relates only to penal provisions. Under the overall Act, measures have been brought in that are law but are not penal provisions. Section 31A(7) is specific to penal provisions. In the second piece,...

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (3 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: Under section 31A(7) of the Health Act, which outlines the penal provisions, a garda can direct a person to comply with any penal regulations. That is already included in the Health Act, which is mentioned in the first sentence. Where the Bill refers to a direction, specific to the implementation of the closing of a pub, that is very specific to the penal provisions that will be connected...

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (3 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: I thank Deputy Howlin for tabling this amendment. I will touch on a few points that have been raised but are obviously relevant to this. It has been suggested that this legislation is anti-publican and anti-rural Ireland. As the Minister who is bringing this forward and as somebody who has worked in a pub for almost a third of her life, most of the time in a rural pub, I can reassure...

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Second Stage (2 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: I have not seen them yet.

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Second Stage (2 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: I thank Deputies for their contributions and for agreeing to waive pre-legislative scrutiny of the legislation. I accept that it is the second Bill I have brought forward in such circumstances but, as Deputies who are concerned about this have outlined, there is no committee structure currently in place and this legislation will only be in force until 9 November unless the House decides to...

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Second Stage (2 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: One should have been sent around.

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Order for Second Stage (2 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: I move: "That Second Stage be taken today."

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Second Stage (2 Sep 2020)

Helen McEntee: I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." The Bill I am proposing today is a short and relatively simple one, with a specific purpose in connection with licensed premises and certain private membership clubs. However, the importance of this Bill is much broader than that. The Covid-19 pandemic presents an unprecedented challenge to all of our society. The public health...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Direct Provision System (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I thank Deputies Murphy, Barry and Pringle for raising this extremely important matter. Deputy Smith also raised it but she is not here. I referred to this earlier today and it still stands true. I am sorry that residents of the Skellig Star in Cahersiveen felt that for their concerns to be heard this was the only course of action they could take. It is a matter of deep regret to me...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Direct Provision System (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I again thank the Deputies for raising this issue and want to reassure them as I reassured Senators earlier today. The first families will be moved by the end of next week and the remainder of the residents will be moved as soon as possible and as soon as places are found. I have gotten a commitment of no later than the end of the year but, obviously, the objective is as soon as...

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I will speak to this point and address another one. I ran out of time; I was not avoiding answering questions. The measures in the Bill are Covid-specific, but also address a lot of built-in efficiencies in a system that needs to be reformed. That is why there is no sunset clause in the Bill. The vast majority of what is in the Bill has been thought through. It has not appeared in the...

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I thank Deputies for their contributions and their support for the vast majority of what is proposed in this legislation. I appreciate the concerns they raised regarding how quickly the Bill has been introduced and that it required the House to waive the process of pre-legislative scrutiny. I thank colleagues for their forbearance and co-operation in this regard. We have an obligation to...

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I thought I had more time in which to respond.

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I ask the Acting Chairman to allow me just a couple of minutes more as I have not addressed the most important point in regard to the coroner service. The relevant provisions in the Bill are targeted measures to address an emergency. The overall structure of the service needs a different and more fundamental reform that will ensure additional capacity. It is something I intend to deal with...

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: Yes.

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I assume I will have an opportunity on Committee Stage to address that specific point.

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: It should be.

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." I am happy to present this Bill. It is the Government's intention to progress this Bill through all Stages and I look forward to engaging with Deputies in that regard. This important legislation constitutes the Government's response to the challenges posed to our courts and legal systems by the current pandemic. The Bill goes beyond the...

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020: Second Stage (30 Jul 2020)

Helen McEntee: The provisions of Part 1 of the Bill are standard in nature and common to nearly all legislation. Part 2 of the Bill contains urgent amendments to the Coroners Act 1962. The main provisions at sections 7 and 8 provide new powers for the Minister to authorise temporary additional capacity in the coroner system as necessary to meet the risks and challenges arising from the Covid-19 pandemic....