Written Answers Nos. 68 to 77
68. Deputy Lisa Chambers asked the Taoiseach the number of occasions in each of the years from 2011 to 2016 to date in which the powers vested in him or any other Minister in his Department were exercised, without any express act of delegation, by departmental officials of certain seniority and responsibility, as per the Carltona doctrine. [17477/16]
View answerThe Carltona Doctrine permits a function of a Minister to be carried out by an appropriate official on behalf of a Minister, without any express act of delegation, unless the context makes it clear that this is something that can only be done by the Minister personally.
The legal principle underlying the Carltona doctrine was formally established by the UK Courts in 1943 and was ultimately recognised by the Irish Supreme Court in Tang v. Minister for Justice [1996] and Devanney v. Sheils [1998].
The reasoning set out by the courts was essentially that the functions of Government were so complex that no Minister could personally attend to them and therefore the powers given to Ministers are usually exercised under the authority of the Ministers by responsible officials of their Departments.
By virtue of the nature of the principle involved, there are no records available of the number of occasions in which the powers vested in me or a Minister assigned to my Department were exercised, without any express act of delegation, by Departmental officials of certain seniority and responsibility.
69. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality to expedite an application for a residency card for a person (details supplied) in County Longford; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17387/16]
View answerI am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the person referred to by the Deputy made an application for a residence card on 2 December, 2015, which falls to be considered under the provisions of the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) Regulations 2015. I am informed that person was granted permission to remain in this State until 1 July, 2016 while the application is under consideration by INIS. I am further informed that INIS wrote to the person concerned on 15 February and 15 June, 2016 seeking additional documentation including evidence of the current activities of the EU citizen in this State. I am advised that a decision will issue by the end June based on the information available to INIS at that time.
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.
70. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the procedures and processes she has put in place by the Reception and Integration Agency for the open competition for the management of State owned accommodation centres; the resources she has allocated to this; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17370/16]
View answerThe competition for management of the State owned accommodation centres is currently underway and is being run by the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) on behalf of my Department. The OGP published the Request for Tender (RFT) on its website (www.etenders.ie) on 29 April 2016. The closing date for receipt of tenders was 13 June 2016. The OGP is taking the lead on this tender and staff from my Department will assist in assessment of a portion of the evaluation process.
71. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the steps she has taken and she will undertake pursuant to the programme for Government's commitment to reforming the direct provision system, with particular focus on families and children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17371/16]
View answerAs the Deputy mentions, the Government is committed to reforming the Direct Provision system, with particular focus on families and children.
Every effort is made to provide a high level of service to persons in the system. The Direct Provision system comprises not just full board accommodation but a range of services including health, education and welfare supports. The principal issue of concern with Direct Provision relates to the period of time in which applicants - many of whom have multiple court appeals - live in the system.
The previous Government established the Working Group on Improvements to the Protection Process including Direct Provision and Supports to Asylum Seekers, chaired by Judge Bryan McMahon, to report to it on this issue. The Report of the Working Group has implications for a number of Government Departments and services.
The McMahon Report indicated a two-way approach towards improving the life of persons within the protection process by (i) improving the application process and thereby reducing the length of time spent by applicants in State provided accommodation and (ii) improving the quality of life of those in accommodation through improvements of services within the accommodation system itself but also the supports available through other agencies and bodies.
The 173 recommendations in the Report were taken forward by the Cabinet Committee on Social Policy and Public Service Reform. To date, a total of 91 have been implemented, a further 49 recommendations have been partially implemented or are in progress, and the balance remain under consideration.
Just last week I met with those NGOs who participated on the Working Group to bring them up to date on the implementation of those recommendations and I have agreed with them that we would meet on a regular basis with regard to the reforms planned or in process to improve living conditions in centres.
The International Protection Act 2015 responds to 26 of the Report's recommendations. The Act provides for the introduction of a single application procedure for international protection which is a key recommendation of the Report. The single procedure is specifically aimed at addressing the length of time persons spend in the protection process. The new procedure will significantly streamline and speed up the processing of protection applications and will reduce the length of time that persons spend in the Direct Provision system. Preparations for commencement of the single procedure are progressing. I expect that the relevant provisions in the Act will be signed into law later this year.
The Reception and Integration Agency is working on solutions in respect of the key improvements in living conditions and catering solutions for families. There are legal and technical challenges which need to be tackled as part of this work. Catering solutions are already in place in some centres and a pilot project will be commenced shortly at an additional centre with a view to rolling out that model across centres in the coming months.
I am also making arrangements for those living in the system to have access to both the Office of the Ombudsman for Children and the Ombudsman.
I should also point out that accommodation centres are subject to regular and frequent inspections by staff of the Reception and Integration Agency and by independent external contractors. The reports of these inspections are published on the RIA website. Centres are also subject to inspection by various other State agencies including for example Environmental Health Officers. The Reception and Integration Agency has implemented a number of policies in all centres dealing with such issues as child protection, sexual and gender based violence and a code of practice for persons working in accommodation centres.
72. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 85 of 24 May 2016, the status of the progress update for the 173 recommendations as outlined in the McMahon report; if the report is not available, the reasons for the delay and when it will be available; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17372/16]
View answer73. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 38 of 17 May 2016, to outline in detail and in tabular form, specifically which 90 recommendations of the McMahon report have been fully implemented; specifically which further 26 recommendations have been implemented and to what extent; which 57 recommendations have not been addressed and the reason for each recommendation's exclusion; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17373/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 72 and 73 together.
In my response to Parliamentary Question No. 85 of 24 May, 2016 I undertook to provide the Deputy with an update on the position in relation to each of the recommendations of the Working Group on the Protection Process including Direct Provision and Supports to Asylum Seekers (the McMahon Report). A table detailing the status of each of the 173 recommendation in the Working Group Report was forwarded to the Deputy on 16 June last. This report showed that currently 91 recommendations are implemented, 49 are partially implemented or in progress, and the remaining 33 remain under consideration. This represents significant progress in taking forward the Working Group recommendations with 80% now implemented, partially implemented or in progress. My Department continues to actively co-ordinate implementation.
The status update has recently been published on my Department's website and on the website of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service.
74. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 60 of 17 May 2016, for an update regarding the lack of reporting by the Reception and Integration Agency from which there has been no monthly report since September 2015 and the reasons for same; when the October 2015, November 2015, December 2015, January 2016, February 2016, March 2016, April 2016 and May 2016 reports will be available; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17374/16]
View answerThe statistics on the RIA website, namely www.ria.gov.ie have been updated and the latest monthly statistics are now available on the website up to and including end of April, 2016.
75. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if she is satisfied that the dismissal of a person (details supplied) from the Irish Prison Service was appropriate in light of the traumatic events to which they were exposed during their employment as a prison officer. [17409/16]
View answerI can advise the Deputy that my Department has been in correspondence with the person concerned, regarding the matters raised on numerous occasions.
The position of my Department has been extensively outlined in this correspondence and the person concerned has been informed that no further action is to be taken in this case.
However if the person concerned wishes to submit additional, pertinent information, which they have not previously supplied, then my Department will of course examine this further.
76. Deputy Lisa Chambers asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of occasions in each of the years from 2011 to 2016 to date in which the powers vested in her or any other Minister in her Department were exercised, without any express act of delegation, by departmental officials of certain seniority and responsibility, as per the Carltona doctrine. [17474/16]
View answerThe Public Service Management Act 1997 provides that the Minister of the Government having charge of a Department shall, in accordance with the Ministers and Secretaries Acts, 1924 to 2013, be responsible for the performance of functions that are assigned to the Department pursuant to any of those Acts. It seeks to secure an appropriate devolution of authority and responsibility within government departments from ministers to their officials. The Act provides a statutory framework for the assignment of specific functions for which the Secretary General is responsible to appropriate officers or appropriate grades of officers within departments with accountability flowing to the Secretary General for the performance of those functions. The Act reaffirmed that, notwithstanding any assignment (i.e. delegation) of functions of civil servants under the Act, a Minister of the Government is in charge of his or her department and is responsible for the administration of that department as provided for in the Constitution and the Ministers and Secretaries Act, thus confirming the primacy of the principle of ministerial responsibility.
This responsibility, a central element of the structure of Government, ranges from significant political decision making on major policy issues to routine administrative responsibilities discharged by civil servants on my behalf. In accordance with the Carltona Doctrine generally, powers vested in me as Minister may be exercised, without any express act of delegation, by officials of my Department. As Minister, I remain the ultimate decider of Departmental policy, within the overall context of Government policy.
The arrangements in my Department are set out in its Corporate Governance Framework, which is available on the Department’s website at http://www.justice.ie/en/JELR/Pages/Corporate-Governance-Framework-for-the-Department-of-Justice-and-Equality. Information as to the assignment of responsibility within my Department is also available at www.whodoeswhat.gov.ie.
Given their variety and number, statistical information is not maintained in respect of each occasion on which powers vested in me are exercised by my officials pursuant to the Carltona Doctrine.
77. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality her plans in relation to the mini-CABS concept; the number of Garda Síochana divisional asset profilers in situ currently and how many successful convictions have been concluded as a direct result of the asset profilers; the number pending before the courts as a result of the asset profilers; and her plans for additional resources to specifically deal with drug related matters. [17591/16]
View answerThe Criminal Assets Bureau was established as a national multi-disciplinary agency specialising in the targeting of proceeds of crime.
There are very practical advantages to having such expertise located in one dedicated unit with the requisite authority to act on a national basis, particularly in a relatively small jurisdiction such as ours.
To achieve nationwide coverage the Criminal Assets Bureau has for some time maintained a link with each of the Garda Divisions through the operation of the Divisional Assets Profiler Programme.
The role of trained Divisional Assets Profilers, as outlined in the Annual Reports of the Criminal Assets Bureau, is to identify proceeds of crime in their respective Divisions and liaise with the Bureau to bring appropriate action in respect of criminal proceeds. While on occasion the Bureau does investigate criminal matters which may result in criminal prosecutions this is not its primary function.
The Annual Reports of the Criminal Assets Bureau provide information in relation to the activities of the Bureau including court applications made by the Bureau under the provisions of the Proceeds of Crime Act, the Tax Code, the Social Welfare Code and the Criminal Law.
The number of trained Divisional Asset Profilers now stands at 218.
As the Deputy will be aware the Programme for a Partnership Government contains a commitment to examine how communities can better engage with the Criminal Assets Bureau including provision of information on the suspected local use of the proceeds of crime and the potential of a smaller Criminal Assets Bureau being established to target regional assets.
Finally, I understand the Deputy's question concerning resources to relate to recent initiatives which have been announced in response to current levels of organised crime activity. In this regard, I have announced a range of measures including legislative proposals to provide additional powers to the Criminal Assets Bureau in targeting the proceeds of crime, an additional allocation of €55 million to be made available to An Garda Síochána this year in support of targeted measures against crime in its various manifestations, as well as the proposals for accelerated recruitment into An Garda Síochána. The Garda Commissioner has also announced the establishment of a new Garda Special Crime Task Force to augment existing responses to organised crime at a local level.
