Results 121-140 of 391 for garda speaker:Ivana Bacik

Seanad: Order of Business (13 Jan 2016)

Ivana Bacik: ...in particular, will agree with me on that. We need to focus our debate on that aspect because clearly it has the potential to have a detrimental effect on job creation. Senator Darragh O'Brien mentioned garda recruitment. I wish to raise a particular issue that I may well submit as a matter on the Commencement next week. A number of constituents have raised with me the upper age limit...

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] Report and Final Stages (16 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...the Minister and I welcome the fact that the Bill is on this Stage. It is a very important Bill in terms of providing, at last, for a policing authority which will oversee the performance of the Garda Síochána. It has been widely welcomed across the House, will be a notable achievement of the Government and will have important benefits for the future of policing. I refer to...

Seanad: Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Motion for Earlier Signature (16 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: I move:That pursuant to subsection 2° of section 2 of Article 25 of the Constitution, Seanad Éireann concurs with the Government in a request to the President to sign the Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015 on a date which is earlier than the fifth day after the date on which the Bill shall have been presented to him.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Changing Policing in Ireland Report: Garda Inspectorate (16 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: My second question is picking up on that recommendation about the culture. Gardaí need to see the creation of an environment where senior managers and other staff are encouraged to speak up and make suggestions to improve performance. It strikes me that this was something that came up in a number of other reports - not just the Garda Inspectorate's one but also the Guerin report -...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Changing Policing in Ireland Report: Garda Inspectorate (16 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: My final question is about something others have touched on. Is this beyond the Garda Síochána itself? Is there a problem of culture within the Department of Justice and Equality? This committee has previously recommended the creation of a criminal justice inspectorate at that level. I attended a round-table meeting that the Minister hosted on 23 November to explore this...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Changing Policing in Ireland Report: Garda Inspectorate (16 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: At that round-table meeting, the Garda Inspectorate was mentioned as a really good model for development and expansion.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...of legislation in the past few weeks, and this week is no exception. The Leader will respond in terms of the justice debates, but I merely note that we will have the Minister in tomorrow on the Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, the Prisons Bill 2015 and the Criminal Justice (Burglary of Dwellings) Bill, all of which are being taken tomorrow....

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: It is Fianna Fáil which began the practice of putting a freeze on Garda recruitment. Let us not forget that.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Burglary of Dwellings) Bill 2015: Second Stage (11 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...real inroads being made into addressing repeat offending and much better protections for victims of crime. Ultimately, victims of crime wish to see crime prevention and the tackling of repeat offending. I commend the Garda on its work and welcome the fact that Operation Thor has been put in place to tackle very serious, organised burglary offences. I commend the Garda on its previous...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2015: Committee Stage (11 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...of prostitution. I would ask that some regard might be paid to this if we are going to put that amendment through. I understand the public order issue, but we might look at guidelines for An Garda Síochána as to how it operates that provision. Those of us from the Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality who travelled to Sweden and heard about how the law there is...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2015: Committee Stage (11 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: It is, therefore, very important there is joined-up thinking and that the Garda is not, on the one hand, being given a directive that it should be moving on women or men involved in selling sex on the street and, on the other hand, trying to work with them to ensure the criminalisation of clients and pimps. We need to be careful about that. I very much welcome amendment No. 26. It is...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...pricing and so on. It will probably receive cross-party support. Can we have a debate on crime in the new year? Several significant reports have been published recently, in particular the Garda Síochána inspectorate report which was highly critical of so many aspects of Garda and policing practice. Today, one of the three members of the inspectorate spoke about the...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Report Stage (Resumed) (1 Dec 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...a point on reasonable force. The issue has occupied or exercised the courts. It is a phrase that is well used throughout criminal justice legislation in respect of offences and the powers of the Garda. There is well established jurisprudence on how it is defined. It is determined on a case-by-case basis in terms of what is reasonable in the circumstances. I do not believe a more...

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Nov 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...of sentencing. Given the doctrine of separation of powers, it is not something in which we, as legislators, can intervene directly but it raises bigger questions about disclosure of information. Under the Garda Síochána Act, it is an offence for a serving Garda to disclose confidential matters concerning investigations. We do not know where the information in the public domain...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (17 Nov 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...week, on which a number of Senators spoke. I absolutely agree with Senator Norris and share his concern about the way in which this story came into the public domain at such an early stage of a Garda investigation and apparently before an investigation is properly commenced. I share Senator Norris's sentiments on that. The Garda Síochána Act 2005 makes it an offence for a...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Nov 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...calling for a debate on policing. We would do well to examine constructive ideas on improving the quality of policing. Yesterday, the justice committee had a two and a half hour meeting with the Garda Commissioner, Ms Nóirín O'Sullivan, in the course of which she answered a huge number of questions on an array of issues around policing. They covered a wide range of pressing...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Ivana Bacik: Thank you Chairman. I welcome the Garda Commissioner and her team. I also echo Deputy Finian McGrath's condolences to the family and colleagues of Garda Tony Golden on his appalling murder. In terms of victims and support for victims, I really welcome what the Commissioner has said about the victims of crime being placed at the heart of the work of An Garda Síochána. The...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Ivana Bacik: My second question is on one of the many reports to which the Commissioner referred from the Garda Inspectorate - the report on the overall operation of An Garda Síochána - at which we looked at this committee. We also discussed the Sean Guerin report. In both cases issues arose around inadequate supervision of trainees and probationary gardaí being given unwarranted levels...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...of small amounts of drugs for personal use. Will the Commissioner comment on that recommendation? I do not know if she can answer the question. At the launch issues were raised about what the Garda might think of it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Garda Commissioner (11 Nov 2015)

Ivana Bacik: ...a committed cyclist, I would like to put in a word for ensuring that road safety laws are implemented to ensure safety for all road users, particularly vulnerable road users such as cyclists. The Garda cyclist unit is very successful. Are there any plans to increase the number of gardaí on bicycles, particularly in urban centres? It is great to see community gardaí on bicycles.