Written Answers Nos. 151-159
151. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the current or potential residency status in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Meath; if the case is being considered under the Zambrano judgement; if it is recognised that the person has a child with special needs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10890/15]
View answerI am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the person concerned has applied for a right of residency in the State, accompanied by a right to work, based on their parentage of an Irish citizen child, and based also on the principles of the Zambrano Judgment. This application is under consideration at present. All information submitted in support of the application will be fully considered.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the INIS of my Department 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.
152. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if an application for naturalisation is in progress in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Dublin whose spouse is an Irish citizen; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10891/15]
View answerI am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that a valid application for a certificate of naturalisation was received from the person referred to by the Deputy. My predecessor decided to defer a final decision on this application until December 2014. The person concerned was notified of this decision and the reasons for it in a letter issued on 09 December, 2013.
Further evaluation of the case is well advanced and the file will be re-submitted to me for final decision as expeditiously as possible.
The granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour which confers certain rights and entitlements not only within the State but also at European Union level and I know the Deputy will appreciate that it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process.
The Deputy may wish to note that queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to 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 INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
153. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the existing or potential residency status in the case of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 22; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10892/15]
View answerIf the person whose details were supplied has made an application for asylum or subsidiary protection, the Deputy will be aware that it is not the practice to comment on such applications until such time as they have fully completed the protection process.
Protection applicants are issued with a temporary residence permission pending a final decision on their application.
In the event that an applicant is finally determined not to be in need of Protection then consideration is given to whether the person should be given leave to remain in the State on humanitarian grounds.
154. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the progress to date in respect of Operation Kerb within the north central division of the Dublin metropolitan region, including the number of individuals who were arrested, charged and brought before the courts in respect of offences under this operation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10897/15]
View answerI have requested a report from the Garda authorities in relation to the matters referred to by the Deputy. I will contact the Deputy directly as soon as the report is to hand.
156. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality her future plans to tackle the problem of drug dealing and the increase in the sale and supply of drugs in residential areas within Dublin's north inner city, particularly in the context of the success of Operation Spire, which has led to the level of drug dealing in O'Connell Street and its environs falling sharply; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10902/15]
View answer159. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality her views on the implementation and operation of the small areas policing initiative within the north central division of the Dublin metropolitan region; when will a similar initiative be rolled out across all Garda divisions in the region; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10906/15]
View answer162. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality about the success of Operation Spire within the north central division of the Dublin metropolitan region; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10914/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 156, 159 and 162 together.
I can assure the Deputy that I am in ongoing contact with the Garda Commissioner in relation to the policing measures which are being taken to deal with crime, drug dealing and public safety in the city centre area. The Deputy will appreciate, however, that the specific policing responses to the issues he has outlined are a matter for the Commissioner in the first instance.
A range of operations and other measures are in place in relation to tackling crime and anti-social behaviour, including drug dealing, in the North Inner City. These include Operation Spire, which provides for a high visibility policing presence specifically on O’Connell Street at critical times to address anti-social behaviour, drug dealing and related crime. The operation is designed as a preventative measure and the area is patrolled by uniform patrols supplemented as required by Crime Prevention Unit and Divisional Crime Task Force personnel. Additional resources are deployed on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.
Provisional Garda figures for 2014 show that in the North Inner City there were 16,338 searches under the Misuse of Drugs Act and that there were 871 detections for possession of drugs for personal use (an increase of 68% on 2013) and 830 detections for possession of drugs for sale and supply (an increase of 116% on 2013). Early figures for the present year indicate continuing Garda success in detecting drugs offences.
In relation to the displacement of drug related activity to other parts of the North City I am advised that local Garda management has increased the number of personnel attached to the divisional drug unit to counteract this recent trend. I am assured that Gardaí will continue to provide a pro-active response to drug dealing in residential areas.
The Small Areas Policing Initiative which has been piloted initially in the North Inner City adds further to the local policing response. The approach taken under this initiative involves assigning responsibility to nominated Community Gardaí for a specific Community Policing Area of 50 - 200 dwellings, aligned to the applicable Small Area as defined by the CSO. The Deputy will appreciate that, as with any question of detailed Garda deployment and resource management, it is a matter for the Garda Commissioner to evaluate the scheme and consider its benefits as compared to other community policing models as well as its potential for implementation in other areas. I expect to receive further updates in this regard on an ongoing basis.
Finally, the Deputy will be aware that the Garda response to the specific issues raised by him form part of overall and ongoing implementation of the Dublin City Centre Policing Plan. This involves a high-visibility uniformed presence on key thoroughfares, as well as the use of undercover Gardaí as appropriate. In addition a new multi-agency street outreach approach is being used to work with vulnerable and high-risk individuals and an offender management programme is being piloted to address repeat offending in the Dublin City area. These measures, combined with the Government's initiatives to tackle homelessness, are helping to address the broader aspects of the problems referred to by the Deputy.
158. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if, further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 127 of 6 November 2014 and 27 of 25 November 2014, the replies to which failed to provide the information requested in respect of the case of a person (details supplied) in County Laois, it is possible to ascertain the precise current position regarding residency status or, in lieu thereof, if a freedom of information request will illicit the information, which has previously been made available in numerous similar circumstances by way of replies to parliamentary questions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10905/15]
View answerMy reply to Parliamentary Question No. 134 of 17 December, 2014 in the case of the person whose details were supplied explained my Department's policy with regard to the provision of information in respect of individual applications for asylum or subsidiary protection. This policy has been reiterated on numerous occasions in replies to similar parliamentary questions concerning protection applicants. It was also explained in some detail in my letter to the Deputy dated 31 May, 2014 which was also referred to in my December 2014 reply. There is nothing further I can add on the issue.
