Results 16,601-16,620 of 18,734 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Sexual Offences. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I agree with the Deputy that those figures pose very serious cause for concern. In the equation resulting in such a low rate of trials and convictions in rape cases there are several variables, one of which is the rate of reporting. However, we are dealing here with the difference between reported cases and outcomes. The Deputy should know that in preparing my response to his question, I...

Sexual Offences. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: ——or whether the case in question will end up as a "he did, he did not" type of case. The other point that I would accept is that, psychologically, there may be a significant withdrawal rate among complainants. People may say they are no longer interested in pursuing the matter——

Sexual Offences. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: ——and in that context it may be, and I believe this is what the Deputy is driving at, that anticipation of an adversarial trial in unsympathetic circumstances may cause many women, in particular those who have been the subject of rape offences, to abandon their claims. That is something we would have to study carefully to determine the counter-measures we could take to ensure that factor...

Sexual Offences. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I take it seriously and I accept that of the 47 cases prosecuted, 27 cases resulted in conviction. That is a fairly high conviction rate. The question, however, is what happened to the 400 cases in which there was no——

Sexual Offences. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: Yes. I am not in a position, without putting myself in the DPP's chair, to inform the Deputy of the reason those cases did not go ahead. Obviously, in some cases, the alleged victim says she does not want to proceed with it. In other cases, presumably, the DPP says he is not satisfied with the evidence available to him. I do not know whether issues such as intoxication or absence of...

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: The Deputy has raised a number of issues in his question and in the time available I will try to respond briefly to them all. At the start of 2004, I announced my intention to replace the facilities in the Mountjoy Prison complex with a new prison facility on a greenfield site in the greater Dublin area. I am determined to improve facilities for prisoners and to do away with the practice of...

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I will deal with the questions in the order the Deputy raised them. First, regarding the number of prison spaces, it was necessary in the lifetime of my predecessor as Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform for a major expansion of the prison service. That was due to the fact that, prior to his coming into office in 1997, there was a revolving door syndrome which was causing the prison...

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: The Deputy asked about three prisons being closed. He is referring to Shanganagh Castle, in which a small group of youth offenders were detained and which was not a success as an institution——

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: —— and Spike Island and the Curragh, both of which were mothballed due to the impasse over prison officers' overtime. The Prison Officers Association will conduct a ballot on the overtime issue in the near future and it is my intention to reactivate those prisons as soon as the issue is resolved. The Deputy then inquired about the procedures of the committee that was put in place. The...

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I did not change the committee's criteria.

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: The Deputy suggested that the price is hugely inflated when compared to what was available on the market. A series of advertisements were placed in the national media and the committee considered all the offers that came forward. Many of these involved substantially higher sums of money per acre than that being asked in respect of the site in question. Bearing in mind that the site is located...

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I made several efforts to meet the residents of the area. The arranged meetings have been postponed at the request of the residents.

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I note the Deputy's consistent policy that Mountjoy Prison should remain where it is located at present. I am not willing to waste €400 million on a development to provide an inadequate prison.

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: The question of redeveloping Mountjoy — the Deputy's preferred option——

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: ——was considered by a group established by my predecessor and chaired by Governor Lonergan.

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: The group reported in February 2001 and proposed a development which was——

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: ——priced at that time by a firm of quantity surveyors as being in the region of €336 million.

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I am not ranting.

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I am merely outlining the facts but the Deputy does not appear to want to hear them.

Prison Building Programme. (16 Feb 2005)

Michael McDowell: I would be happy to appear——