Written answers
Thursday, 30 July 2020
Department of Justice and Equality
Covid-19 Pandemic Supports
Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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1012. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the amount of the €24 million allocated for capital projects in the justice sector as part of the July stimulus plan that will be comprised of new projects rather than the enhancement of existing ones. [20723/20]
Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that the funding is provided for a range of projects across Garda, Prisons and Courts including new projects and projects which had been part of existing enhancement and building programmes. These projects will now be accelerated due to the funding provided in the July Stimulus Plan.
The breakdown is as follows:
| Courts | €5 million |
|---|---|
| Criminal Trials – Additional costs for leasing, fit out and basic ICT installation in relation to hosting criminal jury trials to address the backlog following Covid-19 while observing social distancing and national guidelines at a number of new locations in Dublin and nationwide. | |
| Condition Surveys – Additional costs will be required for the remediation, due to Health & Safety and structural issues, at a number of courthouses, which will need to be addressed in the near future to allow for continued use of the premises. These remediation works will be spread throughout the country and provide a stimulus to the construction sector. | |
| Traffic Court – The Traffic Court building is located on Smithfield Square and has been vacant for approximately 20 years. The condition survey carried out in 2019 indicates that significant works will be required immediately to address the defects identified to get this building to an acceptable standard. | |
| Sustainable Energy Initiatives – A series of small projects can be progressed. As the capability of the unit increases, the number/scale of projects can be increased in future years in tandem with increased funding. It will not be possible for Courts Service to meet its energy targets without dedicated funding to this area. | |
| Prisons | €8 million |
| The Irish Prison service has continuous demands for minor/mid-scale refurbishments - security related works (drug throwover/escape prevention etc. in addition to nationwide carbon related led lighting replacement (internal/external) and fire alarm upgrading/replacement. There are also issues with leaking roofs in several locations because of recent severe weather events as well as window replacement/laundry/equipment upgrading requirements. | |
| Garda | €11 million |
| Stations to support the establishment of the Business Services hub under the new operating model of AGS | |
| Custody management facilities in stations, (prisoner processing areas and custody CCTV) | |
| Immigration facilities at Sea Ports and Airports | |
| Public Office facilities for meeting members of the community, including universal access | |
| Garda HQ to meet the requirements of new Units being established | |
| Garda stations to support the establishment of Protective Service Units in a number of Divisions | |
| Provision of Special Victim Interview Suites | |
| The above work will be carried out across a number of Garda divisions, such as Clare, Cork, Laois/Offaly, Donegal, DMR North, Meath, Mayo, Waterford, Kerry and Roscommon/Longford. |
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