Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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923. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of establishments investigated for breaches of guidelines on return to work since 29 June 2020 by Garda division and business activity in tabular form. [15131/20]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, the Garda powers in response to the Covid -19 pandemic were provided for under section 31A of the Health Act 1947, as inserted by the Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest) Act 2020 and brought temporarily into effect through subsequent regulations – the Health Act, 1947 (Section 31A – Temporary Restrictions) (Covid-19) Regulations 2020. There was consultation between senior officials in my Department and the Department of Health in relation to this legislation, and, having been drafted by the Attorney General’s Office, the regulations were signed by the then Minister for Health, following consultation with my predecessor, Deputy Flanagan, as Minister for Justice and Equality, as well as the then Minister for Finance and for Public Expenditure and Reform.

On foot of this the Garda Commissioner and his senior team have implemented a carefully graduated policing response, based on its strong tradition of policing by consent. Garda members engage, explain and encourage members of the public to comply and, only as a last resort, make use of their enforcement powers under these regulations. A range of actions are being taken to ensure that the policing of these public health restrictions is carried out in an appropriate, proportionate and human rights compliant manner.

Adherence to the return to work guidelines by establishments referred to by the Deputy is not a matter for An Garda Síochána but, rather, for the Health and Safety Authority.