Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 508: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if he has received a submission or representations regarding an association (details supplied); if so, the actions he intends to take in relation to the matter or if a review of the overall position in regard to the matter is planned; his plans to deal with the concerns raised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29527/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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There is no record in my Department of any submission or representation from this organisation along the lines outlined in the Deputy's question. The Garda Central Vetting Unit (GCVU) provides employment vetting for over 19,000 organisations in Ireland who are registered with the Gardaí for this purpose and which employ/engage persons in a full-time, part-time, voluntary or training capacity to positions where they would have substantial, unsupervised access to children and/or vulnerable adults. Any vetting process will take a certain minimum period of time to complete. The current average processing time at the GCVU is 3 weeks approximately. This is, in my view, within acceptable limits. Seasonal fluctuations and the necessity to seek additional information on particular applications can, however, result in this processing time being exceeded on occasion. Registered organisations have been advised to take account of these processing times, and the possible need for additional information to be provided in some cases, in their recruitment and selection processes. I am informed by the Garda Commissioner that the organisation referred to in the Deputy's question is registered with the GCVU for the purpose of vetting in respect of employees/volunteers.

In relation to the question of transferability of a vetting disclosure, the position is that 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. 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 at the time when it is issued. As non-transferability protects against the risk of fraud or forgery of such certificates and is a guarantee of the integrity of the vetting system, there are no plans to amend current procedures.