Written Answers Nos. 463-485
464. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of Garda youth diversion projects in Dublin metropolitan region north and Dublin metropolitan region north central in each of the years 2009 to 2018, inclusive, and to date in 2019; and the areas in which they are located. [12927/19]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy is set out in the following tables.
Dublin Metropolitan Region North
|
Project |
Garda District |
Years in Operation from 2009 |
In operation till |
|
North Fingal (Balbriggan) |
Balbriggan |
2016 |
Present |
|
BYB |
Ballymun |
2009 |
Present |
|
Donnycarney |
Santry |
2016 |
Present |
|
Jets |
Coolock |
2009 |
Present |
|
Keep |
Coolock |
2009 |
Present |
|
North Bay |
Balbriggan |
2016 |
Present |
|
Woodale |
Coolock |
2009 |
Present |
Dublin Metropolitan Region North Central
|
Project |
Garda District |
Years in Operation from 2009 |
In operation till |
|
HAY |
Fitzgibbon St |
2009 |
Present |
|
Most |
Fitzgibbon St |
2009 |
Present |
|
Nickol |
Bridewell |
2009 |
Present |
|
Swan |
Store Street |
2009 |
Present |
|
Dime |
Fitzgibbon St |
2009 |
2016 |
472. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of persons prosecuted under section 2 of the Prohibition of Incitement To Hatred Act 1989; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12942/19]
View answerThe information sought by the Deputy is not available within my Department.
As the Deputy will be aware, under Irish law, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) operates independently of me and my Department, and decides whether or not someone should be prosecuted for a crime, following a Garda investigation.
473. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Justice and Equality when the Garda anti-corruption unit was established; the number of personnel assigned to the unit; the rank of each; and if it contains civilian personnel. [12957/19]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, on 18 December 2018, the Government endorsed the Report of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland and I also published at that time a High Level Implementation Plan, ‘A Policing Service for the Future’, which sets out the approach over the next four years.
Among the actions contained within the Implementation Plan, is the development of a new anti-corruption unit by An Garda Síochána, as part of a revised discipline system. The Unit has not been established as yet. The project is at planning stage and the work undertaken to date includes the examination of the roles and functions of similar units in other jurisdictions to ensure that this Unit is developed in line with best international practice.
This is separate from an existing Anti-Corruption Unit which forms part of the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, the remit of which relates to the investigation of fraud in Irish society.
474. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of trainee and fully qualified gardaí, respectively, that have left the force prior to the retirement age in each year since 2014, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12963/19]
View answerSince the reopening of the Garda College in September 2014, almost 2,600 Garda recruits have been assigned to mainstream duties nationwide.
I am informed by the Commissioner that the number of trainee Gardaí and the number of Gardaí who resigned from An Garda prior to the retirement age in each year from 2014 up to 13 March 2019, the latest date for which figures are currently available, are as set out in the following tables.
I am advised with regard to trainee Gardaí, the numbers represent resignations/terminations prior to attestation. In relation to Probationer Gardaí, the numbers represent resignations in the period from attestation to the period of conferring of their award of a Bachelor of Arts (Level 7) in Police Studies and are provisional figures which are subject to change.
Number of Trainee Gardaí who reigned from An Garda Síochána before attestation.
|
Year of Intake |
Resignation /Termination of Trainee Gardaí |
|
2014 |
3 |
|
2015 |
3 |
|
2016 |
3 |
|
2017 |
10 |
|
2018 |
7 |
|
Total |
26 |
*As of 13 March 2019
Number of members who resigned from An Garda Síochána prior to the compulsory retirement age or before full service.
|
Year |
Number |
Of whom were Probationer Gardaí* |
|
2014 |
26 |
6 |
|
2015 |
20 |
17 |
|
2016 |
24 |
15 |
|
2017 |
41 |
8 |
|
2018 |
76 |
2 |
|
2019 |
14 |
0 |
|
Total |
201 |
48 |
*As of 13 March 2019, these figures are provisional and subject to change.
475. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of persons that have asked in each of the past five years to come out of the wards of court procedure; the number that were granted; the number of requests on file; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12983/19]
View answer476. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the procedures involved for a person who no longer wishes to be a ward of court; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12984/19]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 475 and 476 together.
As the Deputy will be aware, the High Court has jurisdiction in wards of court matters and management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service, which is independent in exercising its functions under the Courts Service Act 1998.
However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have had enquiries made and the Courts Service has provided the number of applications made and granted for discharge from wardship in each of the years 2014 - 2018.
|
Year |
Applications made |
Applications granted |
|
2014 |
3 |
3 |
|
2015 |
0 |
0 |
|
2016 |
3 |
3 |
|
2017 |
7 |
7 |
|
2018 |
7 |
7 |
The Courts Service has also advised that there is one application on hand at present.
The Deputy will note that all the applications made for discharge from wardship were granted. However, any request for discharge from wardship must be based on medical evidence. Without such evidence an application cannot be put to the President of the High Court for consideration.
The Courts Service has informed me that the process for discharging a person from wardship is in their view straightforward. The current procedure for a person to be released from wardship is as follows:
- If a person wishes to leave wardship the application is usually made on his/her behalf by his/her committee. However, if the person applies directly to the Wards of Court Office that office will correspond directly with that person. A letter is sufficient to commence the process.
- A report from a medical practitioner saying that the ward is capable of managing his/her property and person must be lodged. The Wards of Court Office will then ask a court medical visitor to attend the ward and to provide a report for the benefit of the court. If that report also confirms that the ward has capacity, the matter is listed before the President of the High Court at the next available wards of court motion list, which is usually on Mondays during the legal term.
- If the President of the High Court is satisfied with the medical evidence, an order is made discharging the person from wardship and remitting him/her control of his/her assets.
The Courts Service has further advised that the process can be completed in a matter of weeks, depending on the time taken to procure the medical reports. However, if there is an urgency to the application it will be prioritised by the Wards of Court Office.
477. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the precise purpose of the governor's discretional account within each prison in the Irish Prison Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13005/19]
View answer478. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the source from which the governor's discretional account within each of the prisons in the Irish Prison Service is funded; if there are multiple sources; if so, the sources; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13006/19]
View answer479. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the full list of purposes or items from which payments can be made from the governor's discretional account within the Irish Prison Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13007/19]
View answer480. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if payments made from the governor's discretional account are subject to their absolute discretion; if not, if there is a governance approval structure which requires notification and-or sanction by a higher authority within the Irish Prison Service headquarters in County Longford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13008/19]
View answer481. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if the administration, governance, funding and oversight or supervision of the governor's discretional account has changed since 2012; if so, the changes made; the reason they were made; when and, if more than one suite of changes were made, the details of each; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13009/19]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 477 to 481, inclusive, together.
My officials in the Irish Prison Service have informed me that the term Governors’ Discretionary Fund was replaced by the term Prisoner Assist Programme Fund in 2009.
I am further informed that the purpose and procedures for the use of these funds was initially set out in January 2006 in Irish Prison Service Finance Circular FD/2006/01 (Governors’ Discretionary Funds) with the latest procedures (ACC.002.003 – Prisoner Assist Programme Procedures, Incl. Hardship Payment Procedures) issued in March 2013. These two documents are in the following links for information purposes.
The purpose of the Prisoner Assist Programme is to provide a facility for Governors to identify, prioritise and fund projects for the benefit of prisoners, in a planned and co-ordinated way.
The primary source of funding for the Prisoner Assist Programme are the profits arising from sales in the Prison Shops (referred to as Tuck Shops). Other sources of funding are of less significance and include contributions from work and training receipts and monies from St Vincent de Paul for distribution to prisoners.
A list of the types of expenditure considered eligible for funding from the Prisoner Assist Programme Fund is included at Appendix I of the following procedure issued in March 2013 (ACC.002.003). The governance and accounting arrangements for operation of the Prisoner Assist Programme Fund are also set out in the following procedure (ACC.002.003).
Regarding changes to procedures since 2012, the existing procedure issued in March 2013 replaced procedure ACC.002.002 that issued in November 2011. The only change in the new procedure was the inclusion of payments to the Red Cross Programme and to the Community Return Programme in Appendix I (Types of Eligible Expenditure).
482. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of tuck shops in operation across the 12 prisons in the Irish Prison Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13010/19]
View answer483. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the turnover, profit and loss of each tuck shop operated across all 12 prisons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13011/19]
View answer484. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if each tuck shop in the Irish Prison Service is audited with the benefit of stocktaking on an annual basis; if so, the person or body that audits same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13012/19]
View answer485. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if the products stocked and sold in the tuck shops in the 12 prisons in the Irish Prison Service are sold at recommended retail prices; if there is subsidisation of the products being sold; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13013/19]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 482 to 485, inclusive, together.
My officials in the Irish Prison Service have informed me that 11 prison locations operate tuck shop accounts with the Dóchas Centre included in the account for Mountjoy Prison.
The accounting information for the 11 prison locations is shown in the following table for 2017, which are the last audited figures.
|
Prison Location |
Total 2017 Sales |
Total 2017 Gross Profit |
|
Arbour Hill |
152,783 |
24,055 |
|
Castlerea |
531,769 |
117,091 |
|
Cloverhill |
654,664 |
76,343 |
|
Cork |
449,096 |
88,106 |
|
Limerick |
447,012 |
94,441 |
|
Loughan House |
96,404 |
9,968 |
|
Midlands |
1,279,707 |
186,842 |
|
Mountjoy (incl. Dochas) |
1,161,856 |
161,812 |
|
Portlaoise |
477,119 |
27,236 |
|
Shelton Abbey |
73,987 |
12,308 |
|
Wheatfield |
695,738 |
102,543 |
|
Total |
6,020,135 |
900,745 |
The profits arising from sales in the prison Shops are transferred to the Prisoner Assist Programme to fund projects for the benefit of the prisoners, in a planned and co-ordinated way.
The operating and governance arrangements for the tuck shops are included in Irish Prison Service procedure ACC.005.001 (Tuck Shop Account Procedures) issued in April 2014; this procedure is in the following link for information purposes. Stock control and stocktaking arrangements are included in this procedure.
Tuck shops are subject to reviews of compliance with procedures by the Irish Prison Service Finance & Estates Directorate and are included in audits of prisons undertaken by the Internal Audit Unit of my Department and by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, both of whom audit two to three prisons each year.
It is Irish Prison Service policy that products are sold in the tuck shops at Recommended Retail Price as advised by the contracted supplier.
