I propose to take Questions Nos. 95 and 153 together.
The Deputy will appreciate that the incident in question is currently the subject of a Garda investigation and so it would be inappropriate for me, as Minister, to make any comment at this time in relation to any such investigation. With regards to obtaining a security licence, the Private Security Authority, established under the Private Security Services Act 2004, is the regulatory body with responsibility for regulating and licensing the private security industry. The Authority is an independent body under the aegis of my Department. My Department is therefore not involved in the day to day running of the Authority and the processing of licence applications is a matter solely for the Authority.
I would however like to assure the Deputy that the vetting of applicants is an integral part of the licensing process of the Private Security Authority. I am informed that, in the case of contractor licensing, all directors of a company, the partners in a partnership, all sole traders and any shareholder in a company with a shareholding of 20% or more are vetted, on the Authority's behalf, by An Garda Síochána. All applicants for individual licences also go through the vetting process. I am also informed by the Authority that when deciding whether to grant a licence to a person with a relevant conviction, it will take the following into account:
nature and seriousness of the offence(s) involved
the length of time since completion of sentence
overall interests of the public good
relationship of the crime to the purpose of requiring a licence
age of person before and after offence
conduct of person before and after the offence
evidence of rehabilitation
The PSA has written criminality guidelines in place to assist the Authority in making a decision, however they are in no way bound by these guidelines and may decide,where it deems the conviction(s) renders an applicant unsuitable to hold a licence, to refuse an application. The criminal record checking and criminality guidelines are continually monitored and validated to ensure that these systems operate as effectively as possible. I can inform the Deputy that, it is in this context that, discussions are ongoing, at my request, at a senior level within my Department, the PSA and An Garda Síochána to ensure, to the greatest extent possible, that inappropriate persons are not in a position to secure licences in the private security sector. It is a complex legal area but based on the outcome of these discussions, I will then be in a position to decide if anything further needs to be done on this matter.