Results 1-20 of 37 for ira speaker:Dermot Ahern

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Crime Prevention (7 Oct 2010)

Dermot Ahern: ...very successful in recent years in dealing with the so-called dissidents. Much of the reason for this is that most people do not have the type of support that their predecessors in the provisional IRA had across this island.

Crime Prevention (7 Oct 2010)

Dermot Ahern: ...the support being small by any standard. The author refers to small-scale support. None of us is complacent in that regard. It is not correct to equate it to the type of support the Provisional IRA had especially in the North during its campaign of 30 years because the majority of people North and South do not give logistical support to the so-called dissidents.

Seanad: Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998: Motion (17 Jun 2010)

Dermot Ahern: ...and recognise that despite our own determination, the threat posed is severe. The Independent Monitoring Commission has reported on the increase in activity by these groups, especially the Real IRA, in the past year or so. No one needs to be reminded of the horrific attacks in Antrim and Craigavon last year which left two soldiers and one PSNI officer dead. The most recent IMC report...

Seanad: Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998: Motion (Resumed) (17 Jun 2010)

Dermot Ahern: ...may have been implicated. In all my adult life, I have been acutely conscious of the threat posed by paramilitaries, not just by the dissidents who operate today but also by the former Provisional IRA operatives who were using the area south of the Border as a gateway into Northern Ireland in order to carry out atrocities. Senator Keaveney would have good knowledge of this. The one...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Jul 2009)

Dermot Ahern: ...that advice is that opinion evidence only goes so far. The courts have decided that corroborative evidence must be provided and that a witness cannot merely state that a person is a member of the IRA or that someone else is a member of a particular gang. Section 7 is, therefore, an innovative way of trying to establish that there is, in a particular geographical area, a criminal gang....

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Amendment) Bill 2009: Second Stage (14 Jul 2009)

Dermot Ahern: ...to which a court may have regard in determining whether the offence has been committed. This was the subject of much deliberation by the Supreme Court in a recent case involving members of the Real IRA. In drafting these provisions, it was considered appropriate for the purpose of consistency to replicate these provisions in section 6 of the Offences against the State (Amendment) Act...

Criminal Justice (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (9 Jul 2009)

Dermot Ahern: ...existence of a gang constitutes a new way – the way advised by the Attorney General – of adding to the proofs required to establish that a loose gang, not in any way similar to the Provisional IRA or any other paramilitary organisation that was operating in the State for decades, is operating in a particular geographical area. That is why much of the discussion on opinion evidence, as...

Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998: Motion (17 Jun 2009)

Dermot Ahern: ...that compels us to take the measures necessary to protect innocent lives. The 21st report of the Independent Monitoring Commission, which I published last month, makes it very clear that the Real IRA, the Continuity IRA, the INLA and some other smaller dissident groups remain committed to violent paramilitary action in pursuit of their ends. We should not be under any illusion that these...

Seanad: Criminal Assets Bureau Annual Report 2007: Statements (12 Nov 2008)

Dermot Ahern: ...is not conclusive and it is a matter for the court to decide how much weight such an opinion should be given. It is often said that we made such provision in cases involving the Provisional IRA and other terrorists. Once Provisional IRA members recognised the courts and gave evidence that they were not members of a proscribed organisation, the court ignored the evidence of a chief...

Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998: Motion (19 Jun 2008)

Dermot Ahern: ...for one minute any suggestion that the Government has made an assessment on its own in this regard. The Garda and the PSNI are solidly of the view that the murder of Mr. Quinn was not a sanctioned IRA activity and this has been confirmed by the Independent Monitoring Commission. Returning to the Act, its provisions have been used on 800 occasions over the past 12 months, which is...

Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998: Motion (19 Jun 2008)

Dermot Ahern: ...to be a vital piece of legislative equipment in the continuing fight against terrorism. Members will be aware that, although progress has been made within Northern Ireland and the Provisional IRA is committed to following the political path, there remains a real and ongoing threat from a variety of dissident republican groups. We should not be complacent or presume that the success of the...

Seanad: Northern Ireland: Motion (4 Apr 2007)

Dermot Ahern: ...in this House in February 2006, the two Governments were about to embark on a concerted effort to achieve restoration of the institutions, following developments in 2005 which saw the Provisional IRA declare an end to their armed campaign and subsequent confirmation of decommissioning. Those developments changed the context within which we had been working to restore trust and confidence...

Written Answers — Northern Ireland Issues: Northern Ireland Issues (8 Feb 2007)

Dermot Ahern: ...Monitoring Commission was requested by the two Governments as part of the St Andrews Agreement. The Report finds unambiguously that "terrorism and violence have been abandoned" by the Provisional IRA leadership. The decision of the Sinn Féin Ard Fheis to endorse policing, as well as the significant efforts made in securing that endorsement, are recognised by the IMC as further...

Written Answers — Northern Ireland Issues: Northern Ireland Issues (8 Feb 2007)

Dermot Ahern: ...this approach and take their places on that body and participate fully in its work. I believe that these steps, together with the additional confirmation given by the IMC that the leadership of the IRA remains committed to an exclusively political path and has abandoned violence and terrorism, mean that there are now no grounds for delay in moving ahead with the political process, and the...

Written Answers — Northern Ireland Issues: Northern Ireland Issues (8 Feb 2007)

Dermot Ahern: ...of all weapons is a crucial issue. We have seen tremendous progress in normalising the security environment in Northern Ireland in recent years, as well as full decommissioning by the IRA and a complete shift to a political path. In this context, the need for greater progress by loyalist groups in ending paramilitarism and engaging with the Independent International Commission on...

Written Answers — Northern Ireland Issues: Northern Ireland Issues (24 May 2006)

Dermot Ahern: My position on the IRA is widely-known and consistent. The IRA campaign caused needless death, helped to perpetuate partition and severely damaged the economies of northern and border counties of our island. It was conducted against the will of the Irish people. In the interview to which the Deputy refers, I made clear that the available security advice indicated that the IRA was no longer a...

Written Answers — Northern Ireland Issues: Northern Ireland Issues (24 May 2006)

Dermot Ahern: ...Commission in its 10th Report that there has been a continuing downward trend in the level of paramilitary violence, as well as its positive overall assessment in relation to the Provisional IRA. Particularly welcome is the confirmation that there has been a complete absence of terrorist or violent activity on the part of the IRA in this period, with the IMC not aware of any "terrorist,...

Seanad: Northern Ireland Issues: Statements. (2 Feb 2006)

Dermot Ahern: ...that the time is ripe for politics to come to the fore again. I acknowledge once more the valuable work of the commission. Yesterday's report gives us the first comprehensive assessment of the IRA since its statement of 28 July last. It outlines that significant progress has been made in the switching-off of the IRA's paramilitary machine, the ending of paramilitary activity and the...

Seanad: Northern Ireland Issues: Statements. (2 Feb 2006)

Dermot Ahern: Some of the media reported, on foot of the selective leaking of the IMC report and other issues, that the IICD had acknowledged that the IRA has retained some weapons, but the exact opposite is in fact the case. We were somewhat bemused and disappointed when we heard, when we were in London, that had happened. I wish to emphasise that the IMC and IICD reports have confirmed, contrary to the...

Written Answers — Northern Ireland Issues: Northern Ireland Issues (7 Dec 2005)

Dermot Ahern: ...and justice powers to the Northern Ireland Assembly. As regards the peace process generally, the Deputy will be aware that there have been significant positive developments in recent months. The IRA statement of 28 July which announced an end to its armed campaign, and the report of the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning on 26 September confirming that the IRA had put...