Wednesday, 21 Oct 2015

Written Answers Nos. 133-137

Hospital Appointments Status

Questions (133)

Colm Keaveney

Question:

133. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Galway will receive an appointment for eye cataract surgery; the reason the person has so far had three appointments scheduled, cancelled and re-scheduled; the guarantee that will be provided that the latest appointment, re-scheduled for 2016, will not be cancelled yet again; the reason this person has been forced to suffer the indignity of having been offered this procedure three times in the private sector with immediate scheduling by the same consultant whose appointments have been cancelled in the public sector three times, at a cost in excess of €3000, which sum this person has no access to; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36807/15]

Written answers

Minister for Health

Under the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.

In relation to the specific case raised, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Foreign Naval Vessels

Questions (134)

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

134. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the military vessels that are accessing Irish waters; their purpose; their point of origin and destination; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36712/15]

Written answers

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade

Under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, all vessels have a right of innocent passage through the territorial seas of a coastal state and there is no requirement to seek the consent of the coastal state.

However a coastal state may regulate entry to its internal waters and in Ireland the consent of my Department is required in relation to any foreign naval vessels wishing to enter the internal waters of the State. Many bays and inlets, as well as all ports and harbours, are located within our internal waters.

When an application for a foreign naval vessel to enter these waters or to visit an Irish port is received by my Department it is considered in consultation with relevant Government Departments.

The policy of successive Irish Governments has been to grant permission for visits by foreign naval vessels provided that the visits do not form part of a naval exercise and that the vessels are not carrying nuclear weapons.

In the first nine months of this year, my Department received 28 requests for foreign naval vessels to visit Irish waters. These requests originated from the following countries:

Canada

France

Germany

Mexico

Netherlands

Spain

Turkey

UK

USA

The majority of requests for foreign naval vessels to visit Irish waters relate to crew rest.

Military Aircraft

Questions (135)

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

135. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the military aircraft that are accessing Irish airspace, their purpose, their point of origin and destination; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36713/15]

Written answers

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade

The Air Navigation (Foreign Military Aircraft) Order 1952 gives the Minister for Foreign Affairs primary responsibility for the regulation of activity by foreign military aircraft overflying or landing in the State. My Department considers requests for permission to transit Irish airports or airspace in consultation with relevant Departments and agencies.

In September 2015 permission was granted by my Department in respect of 134 overflights and landings of military aircraft from the following countries:

Australia

Canada

Czech Republic

Denmark

Egypt

France

Germany

Greece

India

Italy

Jordan

Kazakhstan

Lebanon

Mexico

Morocco

Netherlands

Pakistan

Palestine

Romania

Russia

Sweden

USA

Most requests for landings by foreign military aircraft concern aircraft refuelling, crew and passenger rest, with smaller numbers relating to the transport of dignitaries, flight crew training, airport familiarisation and aircraft maintenance. A substantial number of requests in September 2015 concerned travel by foreign dignitaries to New York for the UN General Assembly.

United Nations

Questions (136)

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

136. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will report on Ireland's involvement with the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36714/15]

Written answers

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade

Reaching Critical Will (RCW) is the disarmament programme of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), the oldest women's peace organization in the world. RCW was created to encourage civil society engagement in UN disarmament processes and to support NGO interaction with governments and the United Nations; to provide timely and accurate reporting on all relevant conferences and initiatives so that those unable to attend can stay informed, and to maintain a comprehensive online archive of all statements, resolutions, and other primary documents on disarmament. RCW also produces research studies, reports, statements, fact sheets, and other publications on key issues relevant to disarmament, arms control, and militarism.

Ireland has been a regular contributor to RCW since 2006 and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade regards them as a serious and useful civil society partner. We receive activity reports from the organisation on an annual basis and maintain regular contact with the management team throughout the year. Most recently a grant of €60,000 was made to RCW for activities during the period April 2015 to April 2016.

Additionally, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has interaction with the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom through contacts via our Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations in New York with the UN-supported NGO Working Group on Women Peace and Security, of which it is a member.

This work directly supports the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s high level goal ‘to work for a fairer, more just, secure and sustainable world’.

Freedom of Information Requests

Questions (137)

Seán Fleming

Question:

137. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of freedom of information requests, in tabular form, received by his Department in 2015 to date; the number of these considered within four weeks of receipt; the number of instances where the consideration period was extended by up to four weeks because the resources necessary to complete the consideration within the original timeframe were not available. [36749/15]

Written answers

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade

The information requested by the Deputy is set out in the following table.

Freedom of Information (FOI) Requests 2015

Number of FOI requests received to date	Number of FOI requests where the period of consideration was 20 working days	Number of FOI requests where the period of consideration was a period of up to 40 working days	Number of FOI request currently under consideration
103	78	7	18