Written Answers Nos. 17-23
17. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the discussions and input her Department has had with the Department of Health regarding the health care and community benefits as recommended for the Magdalen laundries' survivors by Mr. Justice Quirke in his report; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35378/14]
View answerMy Department has had detailed consultation with the Department of Health in order to prepare a draft scheme of a Bill to provide health benefits as recommended by Justice Quirke. This Bill is currently being drafted and I intend to publish the Bill as soon as possible in order for it to be enacted in the current Oireachtas session. The Bill will enable the Health Service Executive to make available, without charge a range of services. These will include:
- general practitioner medical and surgical services
- drugs, medicines and medical and surgical appliances
- nursing services specified in section 60 of the Act of 1970
- dental, ophthalmic and aural treatment and dental, optical and aural appliances
- counselling services in respect of the period of time during which a relevant participant was admitted to and worked in a relevant institution
- chiropody services
- physiotherapy services
The Department of Health has advised that, given the wide variation of country health system's organisation, access to equivalent medical services for participants living abroad will be dealt with on an administrative basis by the HSE, as appropriate to the specific circumstances of the individual and the country of residence and its health system organisation.
The Bill will also include a provision to exempt ex-gratia payments under my Department's scheme of support for women who worked in Magdalen Laundries from any assessment of means under the Nursing Home Support Schemes Act 2009. The Deputy will be aware that this scheme provides payments of between €11,500 and €100,000 to the women, depending on the length of stay in the relevant institution. To date 442 applicants have received ex-gratia payments totalling €16 million.
In addition to these measures, the Minister for Social Protection is making top up pension-type payments to these women to bring her weekly income from the State to €230.30 if 66 or over and €100 if under that age.
18. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Justice and Equality her views regarding the reason the State introduced one third enhanced remission [section 59 prison rules, 2007] bringing the Irish penal system into line with European norms, but subsequently rejected applicants who fulfilled the criteria, triggering a significant and costly number of legal challenges, including a sitting of the Supreme Court. [35365/14]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the principle of a rate of remission greater than the standard rate of 25 per cent, was introduced as a means of incentivising prisoners to engage with as wide a range of activities and services available to them throughout the prison estate as a means of assisting them in increasing their likelihood to successfully reintegrate back into society when their sentences are complete and to increase the likelihood that they would not reoffend.
The principle of greater remission was introduced into the Irish prison system through Statutory Instrument 252 of 2007 (referred to as the Prison Rules). Rule 59 allowed for the granting of greater remission to certain classes of prisoner by virtue of good conduct whilst imprisoned. The most important aspect of the Rule however, is outlined in Rule 59 (2) which specifies that -
"The Minister may grant such greater remission of sentence in excess of one quarter, but not exceeding one third thereof where a prisoner has shown further good conduct by engaging in authorised structured activity and the Minister is satisfied that, as a result, the prisoner is less likely to reoffend and will be better able to reintegrate into the community".
The Deputy will therefore appreciate that the central thrust of the Rule and the central consideration that I must take into account when deciding whether or not to grant individual prisoner's a rate of remission greater than the standard, is whether or not, through his/her (i) conduct in prison and (ii) the extent to which authorised structured activity has been engaged in, the prisoner has demonstrated that he or she is less-likely to reoffend if released at a time earlier than the normal remission date.
Arising from a number of judicial challenges to decisions made by me in respect of applications by prisoners for greater remission, and in consideration of comments by members of the judiciary hearing those challenges, on the advice of the Attorney General, I amended the Rule by introducing Statutory Instrument SI 335 of 2014 in August of this year. The purpose of this amendment was to bring greater clarity to the Prison Rules by outlining to prisoners the precise factors to be taken into account by me when considering whether or not to grant a prisoner a greater rate of remission.
I will not read into the record of the House the full provisions of the amended Rule, as the full Rule is available in the Library and elsewhere. However, I will outline that the main considerations include the nature and gravity of the offence, the period of the sentence served, the potential threat to public safety, the views (where relevant) of an Garda Síochána and of course the prisoner's conduct as well as his or her engagement with authorised structured activities.
Finally, with regard to the number of court challenges arising, it is of course inevitable that some prisoners will feel aggrieved by negative decisions and will seek recourse through the Courts. I cannot, and would not, interfere in their right to do so. In view of the fact that a number of challenges remain before the Courts, the Deputy will appreciate that it would be inappropriate for me to comment on the reasons why any decision has been or will be appealed to the Supreme Court. However, I can advise the House that any decisions to appeal certain judgements to the Supreme Court have been (and will be) taken in consideration of the advice of the Attorney General.
19. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice and Equality her views on concerns that there may be a serious gap in the extent of records available for persons going through the Magdalen redress scheme whereby those former residents who were not the legal responsibility of the institutions concerned; that is they did not come through the courts and under legislation they remained the legal responsibility of themselves or their parents-guardians, but who in all likelihood were institutionalised under duress and without their consent; if her attention has been drawn to the fact that such persons may not appear in official records; the way she proposes to tackle this issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35383/14]
View answer770 applications have been received under the scheme and to date decisions have been made in 80% of the cases. Over €16m has been paid out under the scheme.
The situation regarding records was addressed in detail in the Report of the McAleese Committee and was well known when the decision to introduce a scheme was made.
The most extensive and detailed records of those who entered Magdalen laundries are those created by the religious congregations who operated the institutions in question. Those records were created on the basis of entry and were not dependent on the reason for entry or the legal status of the person concerned. However not all records for all the Magdalen laundries going back to the foundation of the State have survived.
There are very few State records that refer to a person's entry to a Magdalen laundry although there are more frequently State records of a more general nature which can serve to corroborate or otherwise, a person's presence in this type of institution.
In cases where the relevant religious congregation have incomplete or no record for an applicant, or where the applicants disagree with the records, my officials carry out a thorough examination, checking whatever records are available from other departments, agencies and institutions to support the claim. Each application is assessed on an individual basis taking into account any available records or documents as well as the applicant's testimony. The Deputy will also be aware that if the applicant disagrees with this assessment she can avail of an internal review process and also an independent appeal process which involves a review by Ombudsman's Office.
20. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the process to be used in the selection of the new Garda Commissioner; the number of applicants from outside the State to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35414/14]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that an open competition for the selection of the next Garda Commissioner is currently under way and an information booklet setting out all the details is available on the website of the Public Appointments Service. Applications are invited from any person who believes they possess the requisite competencies, skills and experience to carry out this very challenging role. The closing date for applications for the position is Thursday 25th September 2014.
The Public Appointments Service is handling all aspects of the competitive process for the Government and they are being assisted by executive search partners. The Public Appointments Service is an independent agency and no details of the number or origin of any candidates are provided to me.
It is expected that the competitive selection process will take approximately 8 weeks to complete after which the Government will make the necessary appointment as set out in the Garda Síochána Act 2005.
21. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of Irish citizens known to be engaged in armed conflict in either Syria or Iraq; if she is satisfied that the measures that are in place to guard against the spread of fundamentalist Islamic terrorism here; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35371/14]
View answerThere is considerable concern across Europe and elsewhere at the phenomenon of individuals travelling to conflict areas in the Middle East and the consequential threat posed to national security.
The compilation of accurate statistics in relation to the numbers of actual foreign fighters is problematic due to the secretive nature of those travelling and the many and circuitous routes some individuals take in reaching their destination of choice. Many of the frontiers are unguarded and porous.
The number of Irish citizens who are believed to have travelled to the conflict zones since 2010 is estimated at between 25 and 30, 3 of whom are known to have died.
Within that number are individuals who would have travelled to Libya and other Arab States to take part in the popular uprisings known as the Arab Spring which began in December 2010. Some of these are known to have returned.
As previously stated, the phenomenon of individuals travelling to the conflict zones has affected the majority of European States and it is one to which Ireland gave priority during the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2013. In that connection Ireland was successful in gaining the agreement of the Member States to carry out a review of the EU Strategy for Countering Radicalisation and Recruitment to Terrorism.
A primary point of focus in this review is the foreign fighter issue. A number of initiatives at EU level have been developed to combat this phenomenon including community relations initiatives, media campaigns, enhanced tracking of movements, engagement with third countries (notably Turkey) and engagement with internet service providers to curb radical online content.
In Ireland, An Garda Síochána monitors the movements of those suspected of involvement in extremist behaviour and in line with best practice internationally has engaged with returnees from the conflict areas. In tandem with that the Gardaí operate a progressive community relations programme through its Racial Inter-Cultural and Diversity Office. That office is in regular contact with our minority communities and recently received favourable comment on its operation from the UN Counter Terrorism Committee. It is of course essential that at times like this entire communities do not get stigmatised because of the actions of a few. It has to be recognised that the vast majority of our citizens wish only to go about their daily lives in peace.
I am also fully committed to safeguarding the security of the Common Travel Area. This is given the highest priority by our Immigration Service. Operational and data sharing cooperation with the UK immigration authorities is at an all time high. Across all aspects of immigration, including visas, asylum, citizenship and border control, there is unprecedented day to day cooperation between the two countries. This includes the sharing on a daily basis of large amounts of information on visa applicants to detect persons who are trying to enter either country by evading immigration controls and checks. At ports of entry there is close operational cooperation involving constant liaison between Irish and British immigration officers on individuals arriving at our borders.
The enhanced cooperation has stemmed from quarterly meetings of senior Irish and British immigration officials over a number of years and has been discussed between myself and my UK counterpart and at Taoiseach / Prime Minister level.
Finally, I wish to advise the Deputy that I recently published new legislation in the form of the Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2014. The Bill will transpose into Irish law an EU Council Framework Decision on combating terrorism (2008/919/JHA). In particular, the Bill, when enacted will amend the Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) Act 2005 to create the three new offences of, public provocation to commit a terrorist offence, recruitment for terrorism and training for terrorism. These offences will carry sentences of up to 10 years imprisonment on conviction on indictment.
22. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if and when it is planned to introduce legislation concerning prostitution, exploitation and trafficking as recommended by the Oireachtas justice committee in its report published last year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35377/14]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that Ireland already has an extensive legislative framework prohibiting the trafficking of persons for the purposes of exploitation (including sexual exploitation) with stringent penalties.
The Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act 2008 prohibits trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation. Any person found guilty of such an offence shall be liable to imprisonment for life or a lesser term, and at the discretion of the court, to a fine.
I am examining the recommendations made by the Joint Committee on Justice Defence and Equality, the advices of the Attorney General and the views of the Minister for Health regarding a new approach to prostitution legislation.
As you will be aware, prostitution raises a wide spectrum of issues. When I have had the opportunity to complete consideration of the issues, proposals will be brought to Government in the usual manner.
23. Deputy Joe Higgins asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if translation and interpretation services were available to the case of the migrant rape victim known as 'Miss Y' at all stages of her interaction with State services. [35386/14]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, the Health Service Executive has appointed a four person Inquiry Team to establish all the factual circumstances in relation to the case of Ms. Y and the chain of communication between different service providers. The inquiry team seeks to establish the full facts surrounding the matter including the sequence of events and the care given to the woman involved. It would not be appropriate for me to comment on this matter prior to the publication of the Inquiry Team Report.
