Skip to main content
Normal View

Wednesday, 17 Apr 2013

Written Answers Nos. 195-202

Garda Strength

Questions (195)

Michael P. Kitt

Question:

195. Deputy Michael P. Kitt asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the strength in numbers nationwide of An Garda Síochána for the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17809/13]

View answer

Written answers

The personnel strength of An Garda Síochána on 31 December 2008-2012 and on 31 March 2013 was as set out in the following table:

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

31/03/2013

14,412

14,547

14,377

13,894

13,424

13,366

Commissions of Investigation

Questions (196, 197)

Niall Collins

Question:

196. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the date on which he intends to publish in full Chapter 20 of the Report of the Commission of Investigation into the Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin chaired by Judge Yvonne Murphy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17823/13]

View answer

Niall Collins

Question:

197. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the obstacle which prevents him from publishing in full Chapter 20 of the Report of the Commission of Investigation into the Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin chaired by Judge Yvonne Murphy; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that Chapter 19 was published by his predecessor within days of the sentencing by the Courts of the priest who was the subject of Chapter 19; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17824/13]

View answer

Written answers

I propose to take Questions Nos. 196 and 197 together.

I can inform the Deputy that the publication of the relevant sections of the report referred to is subject to directions of the High Court under section 38 of the Commissions of Investigation Act 2004 and that these proceedings are adjourned until 11 June. Accordingly, I am not free at present to publish the Chapter in question and the references by the Deputy to the circumstances surrounding the publication of Chapter 19 of the report are not relevant. I can also assure the Deputy that I am anxious to see the Chapter in question published as quickly as possible, subject to the requirements of the legislation.

Asylum Applications

Questions (198)

Patrick Nulty

Question:

198. Deputy Patrick Nulty asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the current or expected position in respect of an application for subsidiary protection in the case of persons (details supplied) in Dublin 15 going back to 2002; the reason for the delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17876/13]

View answer

Written answers

The cases referred to by the Deputy encompass a father, a mother and their child. The father was the subject of an individual asylum application while the couple's child was included as a child dependant in his mother's claim meaning that any determination or decision made in her case applied equally to him. Arising from the refusal of their asylum applications, and in accordance with the provisions of Section 3 of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended), the persons concerned were notified that the then Minister proposed to make deportation orders in respect of them. They were given the options, to be exercised within 15 working days, of leaving the State voluntarily, of consenting to the making of a Deportation Order or of making representations to the then Minister setting out the reasons why deportation orders should not be made against them. They were subsequently notified of their respective entitlements to apply for subsidiary protection in accordance with the provisions of the European Communities (Eligibility for Protection) Regulations 2006.

The persons concerned submitted applications for subsidiary protection. When consideration of these applications has been completed, the persons concerned will be notified in writing of the outcomes. In the event that the applications for subsidiary protection are refused, the position in the State of the persons concerned will then be decided by reference to the provisions of Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended) and Section 5 of the Refugee Act 1996 (as amended) on the prohibition of refoulement. All representations submitted will be considered before final decisions are made. Once decisions have been made, these decisions, and the consequences of the decisions, will be conveyed in writing to the persons concerned.

Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from the INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.

Prisoner Releases

Questions (199)

Seán Fleming

Question:

199. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if prisoners who have served their full sentences will be issued with a certificate of imprisonment upon release as a matter of course which will be helpful to them to obtain rental supplement or accommodation rather than having to apply for this on an individual basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17909/13]

View answer

Written answers

The Irish Prison Service facilitates requests for certificates of imprisonment received from Government Departments and/or from individuals who require such certificates in order to avail of services such as, social housing, social welfare payments, work visas, etc. The Department of Social Protection's Homeless Persons Unit, in partnership with the Irish Prison Service and the Probation Service, provides a weekly welfare in-reach clinic in 12 of our 14 prisons.

All inmates have access to this service on request. Prisoners can meet the Homeless Persons Unit in-reach officer and discuss all elements of support available to them from the Department of Social Protection on release, including social welfare benefits, medical card applications and housing assistance. Many inmates will have more than one interaction with the Homeless Persons Unit in-reach service in preparation for their return to the community. The Homeless Persons Unit in-reach service will often assist the inmate to complete the necessary documentation to access benefits on release prior to their actual release date. In 2012, the Homeless Persons Unit in-reach team dealt with in excess of 2,500 unique clients across the prison estate, these clients accounted for more than 7,000 interactions. Focus Ireland provides a similar in-reach service with regard to housing assistance to inmates in Cork and Limerick Prisons.

Courts Service

Questions (200)

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

200. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality his plans to provide additional resources to the Courts Service to provide for the expansion of family mediation services in courts throughout the country following the success of the pilot mediation project in Dolphin House, Dublin 2, in order to reduce the number of individuals involved in family law disputes coming before the courts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17937/13]

View answer

Written answers

I wish to advise the Deputy that the mediation service referred to is available in Dolphin House in Dublin, in Naas District Court and in Cork District Court. The service does not have staffing implications for the Courts Service. The Courts Service is happy to support its extension to other venues around the country subject to the availability of on site facilities, e.g. sufficient consultation rooms. The mediation service that is being provided is provided by the Family Mediation Service and the Legal Aid Board.

As the Deputy may already be aware the Dolphin House mediation initiative commenced on 21 March 2011. The project’s objective was to offer an alternative to a courts determined outcome and a more appropriate means of resolving certain family disputes through, in the first instance, offering mediation information to persons who have made contact with the Courts Service with a view to issuing proceedings in relation to access, custody or guardianship matters. A formal mediation process is then offered to parties willing to engage. Legal advice is also available.

The net annualised saving from the initiative comes to over €113,000 largely from the overall savings to the courts as a consequence of such cases being re-directed. To date there have been over 500 mediated agreements resulting from the process. The Steering Group overseeing the initiative concluded as follows:

- There are clear cost benefits arising from the initiative and there is potential for further capacity and further savings solely from the current initiative;

- These cost benefits would be increased significantly if the initiative were extended;

- There are considerable individual, system and societal benefits to this approach;

- Based on international experience this approach has the potential to have a significant impact for people involved in family disputes. Benefits extend beyond the parties to the dispute, notably to children, families and even to society;

- It also has the potential to impact quite significantly on the administration of justice in family law cases. Notably, it can impact on the number of cases going through the courts system;

- It has real potential to speed up the resolution of disputes and to do so more cheaply than through the courts process;

- It generates considerable ‘down-stream’ savings on other State services;

- It is an excellent example of the benefits of State bodies providing related services taking an integrated approach.

I am particularly conscious of the potential benefits accruing from an integrated approach to seeking to resolve certain family law matters. This was the main reason for the Family Mediation Service being merged with the Legal Aid Board. There is a recognition that considerable synergies can be achieved through the merger and in order to further facilitate achieving these the Board is now funded through a single grant in aid. This allows the Board to make adjustments in spending within its overall budget that it feels will take best advantage of the two areas of work now sitting within the same organisation.

Garda Investigations

Questions (201)

Luke 'Ming' Flanagan

Question:

201. Deputy Luke 'Ming' Flanagan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the reason the computer and DVDs taken 10 months ago from a person (details supplied) in County Galway have not been returned; the legislation under which An Garda Síochána are entitled to hold this private property [17943/13]

View answer

Written answers

I am informed by the Garda authorities that the home of the person referred to was searched under warrant pursuant to Section 10 of the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1997. During the course of this search, a number of items were seized. I am advised that the items concerned are being retained in the context of an ongoing Garda investigation and that it is usual for such items to be retained until the conclusion of any relevant proceedings. I am also advised that the applicable legislation for the retention of items in such circumstances is Section 7(1)(b) of the Criminal Justice Act, 2006.

Crime Data

Questions (202)

Patrick O'Donovan

Question:

202. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of convictions, in tabular form, for the years 1997 to date in 2013, which have been secured under section 11 of the Non Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17950/13]

View answer

Written answers

The Garda Síochána Act 2005 makes provision for the compilation and publication of crime statistics by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), as the national statistical agency, and the CSO has established a dedicated unit for this purpose. I have requested the CSO to provide statistics directly to the Deputy.

Top
Share