Anne Ferris (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 396: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if his attention has been drawn to the fact that organisations are experiencing long delays in having prospective employees and volunteers cleared by the Garda vetting unit; if he will examine the system whereby an individual will be able to apply for personal Garda vetting which could be brought from place to place and could be limited to a number of years as is the practice in the UK and Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11491/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I do have concerns at the length of time currently being taken to process vetting applications. I recognise that it is important to process these applications within a reasonable time frame both for the benefit of the applicants and the organisations involved.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that at present there are a total of five Gardaí, 76 full-time Garda civilian personnel and ten temporary civilian personnel assigned to the Garda Central Vetting Unit (GCVU). This represents a very significant increase in the level of personnel assigned to the unit, which stood at only 13 before the current process of development in Garda vetting began in 2005.

A number of immediate measures are being taken to improve the situation. The sanction of the Department of Finance has been obtained to retain the services of ten temporary employees in the GCVU. A further sanction has been obtained to engage an additional ten temporary employees for the Unit and these are now being recruited. This should have an impact on processing times. In addition, further steps are under consideration with a view to alleviating the pressure on the staff of the GCVU and to reduce the time taken for the processing of applications. I am informed by the Garda Authorities that, at present, the average processing time for vetting applications received at the GCVU is approximately 10 weeks.

The average processing time for vetting applications fluctuates in line with periods of increased demand. In processing an individual vetting application, additional time may be required in cases where clarification is needed as to the details provided or where other enquiries need to be made, for example, when the person in question has lived and worked abroad. There will always be a reasonably significant time period required to process a vetting application. Registered organisations have been advised to take account of this in their recruitment and selection process. However, the Gardaí make every effort to reduce the time to the minimum possible consistent with carrying out what are very necessary checks.

The vetting service has been expanded greatly in recent years as part of an ongoing, phased programme to roll-out vetting to an increasing number of organisations in the child and vulnerable adult care sectors. This target group is the clear policy priority. Under the current arrangements applications are made to the GCVU by organisations which are registered with the Gardaí for vetting purposes. In response to these applications, which can only be made with the consent of the vetting subject, the Gardaí will release the factual information available to them on convictions and prosecutions, whether successful or unsuccessful, completed or pending. This information is returned to the registered organisation.

Garda vetting certificates are issued to specified registered organisations in respect of a particular post or employment in response to a written request and with the permission of the person who is the subject of that request. Decisions on the suitability for the recruitment/engagement of the person concerned rest at all times with the recruiting organisation.

The Garda Vetting certificate is non-transferable. It is important to emphasise that it is a disclosure to the requesting, registered organisation of the position in respect of a person at the time when it is issued. Furthermore, non-transferability protects against the risk of fraud or forgery of such certificates and is a guarantee of the integrity of the vetting system.