Written Answers Nos. 471-490
471. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the steps being taken to put in place an equivalence system for construction skills certification scheme qualifications for persons returning from England who want to exchange their CITB plant operator tickets for Solas issued tickets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33208/21]
View answerAs from 1st January 2021, individuals seeking recognition of UK qualifications in order to acquire Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) or Quarrying Skills Certification Scheme (QSCS) cards are subject to the same conditions as all other third country applications. Work is ongoing in relation to the potential for an agreed comparable qualification exchange process for UK and Irish qualifications and the relevant information and requirements will be updated if an agreement is reached.
Pending any agreement SOLAS, in its role as Competent Authority, has a streamlined application route for applicants that are seeking a CSCS/QSCS card and who currently hold a UK qualification. Applicants seeking recognition of their UK qualification are required to submit a detailed CV, including reference(s) from previous employers confirming the applicant's work experience, a copy of their valid Operator Card and associated certification to SOLAS at RPQ@solas.ie. All UK qualification recognition applications are reviewed on an individual basis.
472. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science when the 2019 VTOS guidelines will be updated to include the 2018 announcement per letter dated 4 July 2018 from the Department of Education and Science to Solas that international protection applicants are eligible for VTOS once they have permission to access the labour market; if form F103A will be adjusted to include the daily expense allowance in time for the September 2021 enrolment for VTOS in the academic year 2021-2022, given that the absence of these two administrative issues is causing much confusion for students, VTOS coordinators, guidance counsellors and Intreo staff; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33261/21]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, following the Government Decision of 26th June 2018, Ireland opted in to the EU (recast) Receptions Conditions Directive (2013/22/EU). Under this Directive, eligible international protection applicants who have their permission to work may be entitled to avail of further education and training (FET) in the same manner as Irish citizens, including VTOS. It should be noted there is no right to a place on any particular programme, applications from international protection applicants who have their permission to work are assessed according to the eligibility criteria in the same way as other applications.
As international protection applicants do not have an entitlement to income support from the Department of Social Protection, apart from that relating to direct provision, the payment of a training allowance, in lieu of such a payment will not apply. The daily expense allowance is not an eligible payment for VTOS.
Following the letter referred to by the Deputy, SOLAS engaged with the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) to outline the details of these new arrangements.
473. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if his Department has issued an instruction to all education and training boards that international protection applicants will no longer be required to pay international fees to access post leaving certificate courses as per his announcement on 11 March 2021; if so, if the instruction can be made public for the benefit of all involved; if the instruction has not been issued or made public, if this will happen prior to the academic year 2021-2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33262/21]
View answerIn March 2021, I announced that from the start of the 2021/22 academic year, international protection applicants who have permission to work and are seeking to access Post Leaving Certificate (PLC) courses will no longer have to pay international fees of €3,600.
SOLAS issued instruction to this effect to all 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) across the country on May 10th 2021. Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI) has informed my officials that these instructions were re-issued to the ETB Further Education and Training (FET) Directors Forum on May 31st, requesting that all PLC centres across the country be reminded of this position.
The waiving of the international fee in relation to PLC courses moves Ireland further towards a level playing field and improves opportunities for people, ensuring that more people can access FET.
474. Deputy Noel Grealish asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the State agencies, organisations or boards under the responsibility of his Department or that receive funding from his Department that have been charged interest for savings on deposit in Irish banks since negative interest rates were introduced; the amount of interest that has been charged to each State agency, organisation or board; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33315/21]
View answerThe information in respect of state bodies within the scope of the Deputy’s question is not held by my Department. Contact details for these bodies are set out in the attached document, should the Deputy wish to contact the aegis bodies directly with their query.
Contact E-Mail Addresses for State Bodies under the Remit of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science
|
Name of Body |
Dedicated Email address for the Members of the Oireacthas |
Designated Official Responsible for assisting Oireachtas Members |
|
Higher Education Authority |
Oireachtas@hea.ie |
Padraic Mellett* |
|
Irish Research Council( Note 1) |
Oireachtas@research.ie |
Padraic Mellett* |
|
Grangegorman Development Agency |
Communications@ggda.ie |
nora.rahill@ggda.ie |
|
SOLAS |
oireachtasinfo@solas.ie |
Nikki Gallagher |
|
Skillnets Ltd |
oireachtas@skillnets.com |
t.donnery@skillnets.com |
|
Quality and Qualifications Ireland |
ceo@qqi.ie |
ceo@qqi.ie |
|
Léargas – The Exchange Bureau |
oireachtas@leargas.ie |
fbroughan@leargas.ie |
|
Science Foundation Ireland |
ciara.cotter@sfi.ie |
Ciara Cotter |
Note 1 – In regard to the Higher Education Authority (HEA) and the Irish Research Council (IRC) as the IRC operates under the auspices of the HEA. Mr Mellett will address Oireachtas queries for both the HEA and IRC. Please use Oireachtas@hea.ie and Oireachtas@research.ie respectively to contact Mr Mellett.
475. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will consider the rolling out of mandatory CPR training for third-level students on a piloted basis in selected third-level institutions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33342/21]
View answerAs the deputy will be aware, higher education institutions are autonomous bodies as set out in legislation and are academically and administratively independent. This includes in relation to training offered within these institutions, and it is not within my remit to determine what training is offered in any higher education instution.
However I recognise the importance of access to CPR training, and I would be supportive of higher education institutions making such training broadly available to their students.
476. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if any Irish university, centre of further education or scientific research is currently engaged in research involving the use of human embryos; if so, if such research is funded through his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33385/21]
View answerScience Foundation Ireland's competitive funding does not curently support research involving human embryos or embryonic stem cells. I can confirm this is also the position with research funding provided by the Health Research Board.
You will be aware that Government approval was granted for the drafting of a bill on assisted human reproduction (AHR) and associated areas of research, based on the published General Scheme of the Assisted Human Reproduction Bill.
With regard to the core grant allocated by the Higher Education Authority to Higher Education Institutes to cover teaching, research and supporting activities, as you will be aware the internal allocation of funds between teaching and research is a matter for each institution. However, it is my understanding that HEIs adhere to the recognised ethical practices and fundamental ethical principles appropriate to their discipline(s), as well as to ethical standards as documented in national, sectoral, or institutional Codes of Ethics, including with regard to research involving the use of human embryos.
477. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the institutional or other scholarships available including grants from research funders and financial assistance to aid students pursuing professional master's in education in a university (details supplied) following completion of undergraduate studies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33445/21]
View answerThe main support available to assist postgraduate students with the cost of attending higher education is the Student Grant Scheme and the Programme for Government committed to addressing the gap in postgraduate grants. From September 2021 the postgraduate fee grant will increase to €3,500 from €2,000. This increase will allay some of the costs for postgraduate study and would give greater certainty for students in terms of supports. In addition the fee income threshold will increase to €54,240 from €31,500 from September 2021.
SUSI opened its application process for the 2021/22 academic year on March 31 and to date has received over 67,000 applications. I also secured an additional €20m in Budget 2021 to meet anticipated demands on the scheme as a consequence of the Covid pandemic. Grant applications are submitted online via www.susi.ie. Further information in relation to student grant assistance is also available from this website. The telephone number for SUSI’s Helpdesk is 0761 087 874.
The Student Assistance Fund (SAF) provides financial support to full- and part-time students who are experiencing financial difficulties while attending higher education. Under the Fund, financial support can be provided to assist students who are unable to meet costs associated with day-to-day participation in higher education, including a number of categories such as books and other class material, rent, heating and lighting bills and other utility bills, essential travel, childcare costs etc.
In response to the Covid19 pandemic, the SAF allocation for the 2020/21 academic year was doubled from €8.1 million to €16.2 million. Since 2017, an additional €1 million per year has been allocated to the SAF with HEIs asked to prioritise and ring-fence this element of funding for the support of part-time students who are lone parents or members of the other access target groups identified in the National Plan for Equity of Access to Higher Education. An additional €1 million was added to the fund in 2018 for students attending Professional Masters of Education (PME) courses, who are experiencing financial difficulty. This additional funding was also made available for the 2019/20 year and again in 2020/21.
In relation to other supports tax relief at the standard rate of tax may be claimed in respect of tuition fees paid for approved courses at approved colleges of higher education including approved undergraduate and postgraduate courses in EU Member States. Further information on this tax relief is available from the Revenue Commissioners at www.revenue.ie.
Students are encouraged to engage with their institution to discuss any issues in relation to their course, including information on scholarships that may be available directly from the institution attended.
478. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the estimated cost of increasing the non-adjacent maintenance grant from the current rate of €3,025 to €4,025 for full-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [33561/21]
View answerBased on the students in receipt of the 100% non-adjacent SUSI grant for the 2020/21 academic year (25,658), the estimated cost of increasing the non-adjacent maintenance grant from €3,025 to €4,025 for eligible full-time students under the Student Grant Scheme at undergraduate and post-graduate level is in the region of €25.7m per academic year.
The Programme for Government contains commitments to, amongst other things, review SUSI eligibility criteria, adjacency rates and postgraduate grant supports. The review of the Student Grant Scheme is underway with over 250 submissions received via the public consultation process and over 9,000 survey responses were received through an online survey process. It is anticipated that the SUSI review will be completed later this year and will inform policy priorities for the next Estimates process and future considerations regarding the development of student grant policy. At this point I cannot pre-empt the outcome of the review to indicate when any proposed changes will come into effect.
479. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the estimated cost of extending a non-adjacent maintenance grant of €3,025 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [33562/21]
View answerThe latest statistics from the Higher Education Authority (HEA)* indicate that in the academic year 2019/20 there were 27,392 part-time undergraduate and 18,401 part-time postgraduate students at HEA funded institutions. The estimated cost of extending the non-adjacent maintenance grant of €3,025 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level for the approximate duration of their studies is outlined in the table below:
|
|
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
Year 4 |
|
Cost per year |
€138.5m |
€277 |
€415.5 |
€554m |
The Programme for Government contains commitments to, amongst other things, review SUSI eligibility criteria, adjacency rates and postgraduate grant supports. The review of the Student Grant Scheme is underway with over 250 submissions received via the public consultation process and over 9,000 survey responses were received through an online survey process. It is anticipated that the SUSI review will be completed later this year and will inform policy priorities for the next Estimates process and future considerations regarding the development of student grant policy. At this point I cannot pre-empt the outcome of the review to indicate when any proposed changes will come into effect.
*source https://hea.ie/statistics/data-for-download-and-visualisations/data-for-download/2019-20-enrolment-data-for-download/
480. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the estimated cost of increasing the non-adjacent maintenance grant from the current rate of €3,025 to €4,025 and extending this to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [33563/21]
View answerBased on the students in receipt of the 100% non-adjacent SUSI grant for the 2020/21 academic year (25,658). The estimated cost of increasing the non-adjacent maintenance grant from €3,025 to €4,025 for eligible full-time students under the Student Grant Scheme at undergraduate and post-graduate level is in the region of €25.7m per academic year.
The latest statistics from the Higher Education Authority (HEA)* indicate that in the academic year 2019/20 there were 27,392 part-time undergraduate and 18,401 part-time postgraduate students at HEA funded institutions. The estimated cost of extending the non-adjacent maintenance grant of €4,025 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level for the duration of studies is outlined in the table below.
|
|
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
Year 4 |
|
Cost per year |
€184.3m |
€368.6m |
€552.9m |
€737.2m |
The Programme for Government contains commitments to, amongst other things, review SUSI eligibility criteria, adjacency rates and postgraduate grant supports. The review of the Student Grant Scheme is underway with over 250 submissions received via the public consultation process and over 9,000 survey responses were received through an online survey process. It is anticipated that the SUSI review will be completed later this year and will inform policy priorities for the next Estimates process and future considerations regarding the development of student grant policy. At this point I cannot pre-empt the outcome of the review to indicate when any proposed changes will come into effect.
*source https://hea.ie/statistics/data-for-download-and-visualisations/data-for-download/2019-20-enrolment-data-for-download/
481. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the estimated cost of extending a non-adjacent maintenance grant of 100% to €4,025 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [33564/21]
View answerThe latest statistics from the Higher Education Authority (HEA)* indicate that in the academic year 2019/20 there were 27,392 part-time undergraduate and 18,401 part-time postgraduate students at HEA funded institutions. The estimated cost of extending the non-adjacent maintenance grant of €4,025 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level for the approximate duration of studies is outlined in the table below.
|
|
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
Year 4 |
|
Cost per year |
€184.3m |
€368.6m |
€552.9m |
€737.2m |
The Programme for Government contains commitments to, amongst other things, review SUSI eligibility criteria, adjacency rates and postgraduate grant supports. The review of the Student Grant Scheme is underway with over 250 submissions received via the public consultation process and over 9,000 survey responses were received through an online survey process. It is anticipated that the SUSI review will be completed later this year and will inform policy priorities for the next Estimates process and future considerations regarding the development of student grant policy. At this point I cannot pre-empt the outcome of the review to indicate when any proposed changes will come into effect.
*source https://hea.ie/statistics/data-for-download-and-visualisations/data-for-download/2019-20-enrolment-data-for-download/
482. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the estimated cost of increasing the adjacent maintenance grant from €1,215 to €2,215 for full-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [33565/21]
View answerBased on the students in receipt of the 100% adjacent SUSI grant for the 2020/21 academic year (21,668). The estimated cost of increasing the non-adjacent maintenance grant from €1,215 to €2,215 for eligible full-time students under the Student Grant Scheme at undergraduate and post-graduate level is in the region of €21.7m per academic year.
The Programme for Government contains commitments to, amongst other things, review SUSI eligibility criteria, adjacency rates and postgraduate grant supports. The review of the Student Grant Scheme is underway with over 250 submissions received via the public consultation process and over 9,000 survey responses were received through an online survey process. It is anticipated that the SUSI review will be completed later this year and will inform policy priorities for the next Estimates process and future considerations regarding the development of student grant policy. At this point I cannot pre-empt the outcome of the review to indicate when any proposed changes will come into effect.
483. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the estimated cost of extending an adjacent maintenance grant from €1,215 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [33566/21]
View answer484. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the estimated cost of extending an adjacent maintenance grant from €1,215 to €2,215 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [33567/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 483 and 484 together.
The latest statistics from the Higher Education Authority (HEA)* indicate that in the academic year 2019/20 there were 27,392 part-time undergraduate and 18,401 part-time postgraduate students at HEA funded institutions.
The estimated cost of extending the adjacent maintenance grant of €1,215 to part time students at undergraduate and post-graduate level for the approximate duration of their studies is outlined in the table below
|
|
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
Year 4 |
|
Cost per year |
€55.6 |
€111.2m |
€166.8m |
€222.4m |
The estimated cost of extending the adjacent maintenance grant of €2,215 to part-time students at undergraduate and post-graduate level for the duration of their studies is outlined in the table below.
|
|
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
Year 4 |
|
Cost per year |
€101.4m |
€202.8m |
€304.2m |
€405.6m |
The Programme for Government contains commitments to, amongst other things, review SUSI eligibility criteria, adjacency rates and postgraduate grant supports. The review of the Student Grant Scheme is underway with over 250 submissions received via the public consultation process and over 9,000 survey responses were received through an online survey process. It is anticipated that the SUSI review will be completed later this year and will inform policy priorities for the next Estimates process and future considerations regarding the development of student grant policy. At this point I cannot pre-empt the outcome of the review to indicate when any proposed changes will come into effect.
*source https://hea.ie/statistics/data-for-download-and-visualisations/data-for-download/2019-20-enrolment-data-for-download/
485. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the number of workers employed by his Department and in each office or agency under the aegis of his Department that earn less than the living wage of €12.30 per hour; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33592/21]
View answerThe suggested living wage at €12.30 per hour, based on a 37 hour standard net working week, equates to an annual salary of €23,747. I can confirm that there are no staff currently employed in my Department, or in bodies under the aegis of my Department, earning less than the living wage.
486. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Justice if her attention has been drawn to the vetting processes in place for first-time house buyers to arrange viewings which asks for proof of funds; her views on whether these practices are in keeping with GDPR legislation; if not, the steps she is taking to address the matter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32917/21]
View answer491. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice the underpinning passage of legislation that allows for the Property Services Regulatory Authority to advise estate agents to demand sight of a prospective house buyers exact funds rather than their mortgage approval when arranging viewings and or engaging in a bidding process for a property; and if her attention or that of her officials has been drawn to this practice (details supplied). [32884/21]
View answer495. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Justice the plans she has to strengthen the regulation of estate agents and property management agents to ensure maximum transparency and accountability in the way they operate particularly with respect to information requests and bidding processes for home purchases. [33013/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 486, 491 and 495 together.
The Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA), is an independent statutory body with responsibility for licensing and regulating property services providers (PSPs) (auctioneers, estate agents, letting agents and property management agents) in the provision of property services. It monitors PSPs compliance in accordance with the provisions of the Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011 and its associated Regulations.
There is no legislation in place that would allow the PRSA to advise estate agents to request sight of a prospective house buyers exact funds rather than their mortgage approval when arranging viewings or bidding on a property. There are no provisions in the 2011 Act or its associated Regulations relating to agents requesting personal or financial information.
Following on from the Government’s publication of the Plan for Living with Covid-19 and Department of Health and HSE Guidelines, the PSRA, in conjunction with IPAV, the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers and the SCSI, the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland published the guidance document ‘Property Services Providers Guidance to Implementing the Plan for Living with Covid 19’ to provide guidance to PSPs on how to safely manage business continuity during the Covid 19 pandemic. This document sets out measures to be taken at the different levels of the Government’s plan on Living with Covid-19. This guidance, approved by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, sets out at Level 4 and 5 of the Plan that viewings should only take place where proof of funds was available. This measure was advised to protect the health and safety of all parties and is no longer required as the restrictions in place have been reduced from level 5 to level 3 effective 10 May 2021. At no time where proof of funds was requested, was there a requirement for information on the amount of exact funds approved to be provided. The provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 continued to apply in the course of the provision of property services.
The GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 place obligations on data controllers including PSPs, to ensure that all of the principles of data protection law are complied with. I understand that the PSRA and the Data Protection Commission (DPC), which is an independent body established under the Data Protection Act 2018, have engaged on this issue and the DPC has issued targeted guidance in this area in recent days.
Furthermore, Section 61 of the Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011, requires PSPs to retain a record of all offers received in respect of a sale of property other than by auction, for a period of not less than six years. The Minimum Standards Statutory Instrument which was commenced in November 2020, further strengthened the Regulations in relation to the recording of offers, where PSPs are now required to provide written confirmation to each offer or on receipt of an offer and a PSP is not permitted to express or imply to any person, that an offer on a property has been received, unless that offer has been received by the PSP. The PSRA has powers under the Act, to inspect such records as part of an investigation.
487. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice the extent to which her Department can protect the freedom of speech and at the same time protect against the use of such freedom to incite hatred; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33496/21]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, incitement to hatred is a criminal offence under the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act 1989.
Justice Plan 2021 commits to introducing new legislation to deal with hate crime and incitement to hatred by the end of this year. The General Scheme of the Criminal Justice (Hate Crime) Bill 2021 was published on 16 April, and is available on the Department's website.
This is an important step in delivering on the Programme for Government commitment to introduce legislation to address those who target victims because of their association with a particular identity characteristic, and to revise and update the Incitement to Hatred Act. Although incitement to hatred is already an offence, experience has shown that it is difficult to prosecute and there have been very few convictions since the introduction of the 1989 Act.
As part of the work to prepare this proposed legislation, a comprehensive public consultation was carried out which included a public survey and an opportunity for stakeholders to make formal submissions. In addition, my Department also carried out comparative research on international best practice on hate crime legislation.
The purpose of this work was to ensure that the legislative proposals presented are evidence-based, proportionate and effective, while respecting important rights to freedom of expression and association.
I can assure the Deputy that all legislative proposals are developed and put forward bearing in mind the provisions of the Constitution and our human rights obligations.
The right to freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, provided for in the Irish Constitution and in both the European Convention on Human Rights and in the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. However, like other rights in our Constitution, it is not an absolute right, and can be limited or restricted by law. This can only happen where there are compelling reasons, including protecting other fundamental human rights. Any such limitation or restriction must be necessary, proportionate and explicitly provided for in law.
I am confident the approach taken on reforms in this area will ensure the legislation introduced plays a significant part in delivering a safer, fairer and more inclusive Ireland for everyone. This is the mission of my Department and as Minister I am fully committed to combatting incitement to hatred and hate crime as a key element of this.
488. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Justice the number of semi-automatic centre fire rifles that have been licensed by An Garda Síochána in each of the years 2015 to 2020 and to date in 2021; if the proposal to amend legislation to declare any such firearms licensed post 2015 as invalid licences and revoke same with immediate effect infringes on the constitutional rights of citizens; if she will instruct her Department to consult with persons who own such firearms before signing off on such legislation via an appointed group; and if the State will compensate Irish citizens for their loss of property given that this proposal will affect persons who have invested large sums in these firearms in some cases. [32835/21]
View answerThe figures requested by the Deputy were not readily available within the timeframe permitted. Relevant information has been requested which will be collated and verified. I will contact the Deputy directly when further information is available in this regard.
|
Year |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
Total Firearms Imported 2015-2021 |
|
Licensed |
3 |
0 |
5 |
13 |
7 |
7 |
3 |
38 |
|
Unlicensed |
3 |
2 |
11 |
10 |
5 |
6 |
14 |
51 |
|
Annual total |
6 |
2 |
16 |
23 |
12 |
13 |
17 |
89 |
489. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Justice the reason the same visa free travel to Ireland afforded to Israeli citizens is not extended to Palestinian travellers given the need to end discrimination and mistreatment of Palestinians; if she will consider extending equal visa free travel to Palestinians; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32844/21]
View answerThe requirements for individual countries that are visa-required to come to Ireland are kept under regular review in consultation with my colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
A wide range of factors are considered in determining which countries are visa required. In particular, the Government is pursuing a strategy of greater coordination and cooperation on visa matters with the United Kingdom in the context of the Common Travel Area (CTA), which has even greater importance post-Brexit. This is exemplified by the operation of the British Irish Visa Scheme in China and India, which allows for travel to and around Ireland and the UK on a single visa.
As part of this greater cooperation, the matter of alignment of those States whose citizens are visa-required is also being kept under review. The greater the extent of alignment between the two jurisdictions, the greater the opportunity to increase the number of tourist and business visits to the CTA.
At present, both Ireland and the UK (in common also with EU Member States in the Schengen Area) require citizens of Palestine to be in possession of a visa for travel to their jurisdictions. While there are no current plans to change this, any proposals for change would also need to be considered in this context.
490. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice when cases that fall within the parameters of the European Court of Justice Ruling in the Chenchooliah case will be progressed; the number of cases under active consideration in this regard; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32874/21]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling in the Chenchooliah case relates to third country national persons who have been deemed to come within the scope of the EU Free Movement Directive, but for whom the circumstances which allowed those persons to remain in the host State no longer apply. Such persons will be regarded as “former beneficiaries” for the purposes of the EU Directive. The ruling applies equally in all EU Member States.
The ECJ ruled that such persons cannot be removed from the host State on foot of domestic legislative provisions and can only be removed on foot of a Removal Order made under Article 15 of the EU Free Movement Directive. This ruling requires a new Removal Order based process to be developed in this State, based on the provisions of Article 15. The required process is currently being developed in my Department.
My Department estimates that there are approximately 2,500 cases, which are directly impacted by the ruling in the Chenchooliah case. These cases are being progressed at present, insofar as possible, and that position will continue to apply. It is also the case that some of the applicants in this cohort will have another immigration application pending. The post-Chenchooliah Removal Order process will only apply in circumstances where all other aspects of a person's immigration case have been refused and the issue of their removal from the State remains under consideration.
