Written Answers Nos. 376-396
376. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to alter the minimum standards as set out in the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019 to include fully maintaining intercom systems for each unit in large multi-unit buildings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9849/22]
View answerMinimum standards for rental accommodation are prescribed in the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019 made under section 18 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992. The Regulations specify requirements in relation to a range of matters, such as structural repair, sanitary facilities, heating, ventilation, natural light, fire safety and the safety of gas, oil and electrical supplies.
All landlords have a legal obligation to ensure that their rented properties comply with these regulations. Responsibility for the enforcement of the Regulations rests with the relevant local authority.
There are no plans at present to amend the minimum rental standards to include maintaining intercom systems for each unit in multi-unit developments. However, the Regultions are kept under continous review by my Department.
377. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the budget assigned for the establishment of the wildlife crime unit in 2022; the number of staff planned for the unit; when the staff will be in place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9894/22]
View answerThe function of the enhanced Wildlife Crime Unit (to be known as Wildlife Crime Operations) is to support the law enforcement work that has been, and continues to be done by National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) Regional staff. Some 110 staff, including District Conservation Officers and Conservation Rangers are working across the country to address wildlife crime. Since December 2020, conservation ranger numbers have increased by 18%. There are currently 86 conservation rangers stationed around the country to enforce wildlife laws; and they are supported by District Conservation Officers, Regional Managers and Divisional Managers. It is my intention to further increase ranger numbers up to 120 and my Department is working towards this goal.
Funding for training, equipment, staffing or other requirements for the operation are met through the increased NPWS budget.
378. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the status of a review of the retained fire service that was approved by the Management Board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management; if he will fully publish the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9921/22]
View answerThe provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and the provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Services Acts 1981 and 2003. My Department supports fire authorities through setting general policy, providing the legislative framework, running a central training programme and issuing guidance on operational and other related matters and providing capital funding for priority infrastructural projects. Fire services issues are managed in my Department by the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management (NDFEM).
Fire services are provided in Ireland by local authorities in accordance with the provisions of the Fire Services Acts, 1981 and 2003. Under this legislation, there are 31 fire authorities which provide fire prevention and fire protection services for communities through 27 service delivery structures. Local authority fire services are delivered by approximately 3,300 local authority staff engaged at 217 fire stations nationwide. 16 of these stations being staffed by full-time firefighters, a further 4 are mixed full-time and retained, and 197 are staffed by retained firefighters, with approximately 2,065 retained firefighters around the country. It is important to note that the numbers of fire service front-line staff have been maintained at a constant high level throughout the economic challenges of the past number of years, even when staffing numbers, by necessity, were reduced in other areas of the local authority sector.
In 2013, my Department published 'Keeping Communities Safe (KCS) - A Framework for Fire Safety in Ireland'. The adoption of KCS as national policy saw national norms/ standards being established for fire services in Ireland for the first time, against which local authority fire services could benchmark themselves. The report of the Fire Service Validation Group, ' Fire Services in Ireland, Local Delivery - National Consistency', published in 2016, noted the staffing arrangements in place in fire services across Ireland to achieve these standards and that fire services manage staffing levels in fire stations to achieve the national standards of fire service response.
The provision of fire services by local authorities is based on a risk management approach which involves an analysis of the nature of the fire hazards and the incidence and extent of fires which occur, as well as the fire protection measures in place. There has been a welcome downward trend in the incidence of fire, with the fire fatality rate per million of population, using a three-year average, currently at 4.3 deaths per million of population. While each death is one too many, this figure is a third of what it was twenty years ago when it stood at 12.9 deaths per million of population and positions Ireland among countries with very low fire fatality rates.
In May 2021, the Management Board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management mandated a small internal project team to undertake a review of the model of local authority ‘retained’ fire services delivery, with particular emphasis on the recruitment and retention of staff, with the proviso that due consideration also be given to input from the County and City Management Association (CCMA).
The objective of the review is to explore and understand the issues which are impacting on service delivery, to undertake research and analysis and to propose options which will underpin the continuing provision of effective and inclusive local authority fire services into the future. The Project Team will work with and report to the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management Fire Service Operations Committee in the performance of its functions.
The initial engagement element of the review was the gathering of appropriate data and information, to inform the needs analysis and option appraisals for further development. To that end, the project team undertook a procurement process and have secured the services of an independent consultant who will survey the views of the personnel who work in the retained fire services and those that have recently retired from the retained fire services. That feedback in conjunction with consultation at appropriate stages with all key stakeholders during the review process, including central and local government, the public, fire service management/staff, and the staffing interest groups will form the basis of the final review report.
The final report is now in an early drafting stage, it is the expectation of the project team that the final review report will be submitted to the Management Board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management later in 2022. Upon receipt of the final report, the Management Board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management will make a determination on the publication of the report.
379. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of litter wardens in each local authority in each of the years 2015 to 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9924/22]
View answerUnder Section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for the staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authority for which he or she is responsible.
My Department oversees workforce planning for the local government sector, including the monitoring of local government sector employment levels. To this end, my Department gathers aggregate quarterly data on staff numbers in each local authority on a whole time equivalent basis.
However, granular data, in terms of the number of litter wardens in each local authority, is not collected and consequently is not available in my Department. The relevant information should be available from each local authority.
380. Deputy Johnny Mythen asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of times the discretionary top-up for HAP payments was used in 2021 in County Wexford by municipal district; the average percentage amount of this top-up per municipal district; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9933/22]
View answerThe Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme plays a vital role in housing eligible families and individuals. At the end of Q3 2021, over 97,000 HAP tenancies had been set-up since the scheme commenced, of which there were more than 62,000 households actively in receipt of HAP support, including 1,554 households in Wexford. Local authorities have discretion, because of local rental market conditions, to exceed the maximum rent limit by up to 20%, or up to 50% in the Dublin region for those households either in, or at immediate risk of homelessness. It is a matter for each local authority to determine whether the application of a discretionary increase is warranted, and the level of such an increase, on a case-by-case basis. A breakdown of the number of HAP tenancies at end Q3 2021 and the average discretionary increase paid for each of the municipal districts in Wexford is detailed in the table below.
|
Municipal Area |
Active Tenancies @ end Q3 2021 |
No. of tenancies that received discretion |
Average Discretion Rate |
|
Enniscorthy |
330 |
151 |
18% |
|
Gorey/Kilmuckridge |
340 |
228 |
21% |
|
New Ross |
290 |
137 |
17% |
|
Wexford Borough |
468 |
269 |
19% |
|
Rosslare |
72 |
42 |
18% |
|
Other* |
54 |
24 |
20% |
*Inter-authority movements, whilst the tenant is registered with Wexford County Council, the tenancy is located outside of the county.
Section 43 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014, gives the Minister the power to determine the appropriate amount of rent for qualified households, where the household class is not already prescribed for in the HAP regulations. This is mainly used for larger families. The figure for Gorey/ Kilmuckridge municipal district is above the 20% discretion available to local authorities as there are a number of Section 43 determinations included in the calculation.
381. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he uses an application on his official Government telephone; if so, if he has the disappearing messages setting activated on the application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9963/22]
View answerMy Department does not utilise the application referred to in the Question as an official means of communication. I do not have the application referred to installed on my official Department phone.
383. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of vacant council houses in each municipal district in Cork county and each ward of Cork City. [10124/22]
View answerLocal authorities will always have a level of vacancy in their housing stock. This will fluctuate over time as tenancy surrender and re-letting of dwelling is an ongoing process. Therefore, ongoing data in relation to vacant local authority owned homes are not collated by my Department.
However, statistics in relation to social housing stock, at a point in time, are published by the National Oversight and Audit Commission (NOAC) in their Annual Reports on Performance Indicators in Local Authorities. These reports provide a range of information in relation to social housing stock, including levels of vacancy in local authority owned properties by local authority area. The most recent report, relating to 2020, is available on the NOAC website at the following link:
noac.ie/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/NOAC-Local-Authority-Performance-Indicator-Report-2020.pdf.
384. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if an original UK passport submitted as part of an application for an Irish passport can be returned immediately in the case of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9073/22]
View answerWith regard to the specific application about which the Deputy has enquired, the Passport Service has given the applicant an update on what is required for them to have their UK passport returned.
385. Deputy Steven Matthews asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if a passport application by a person (details supplied) will be reviewed and expedited; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9099/22]
View answer399. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when passports are likely to issue for persons (details supplied) who are due to travel on 2 May 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9915/22]
View answer404. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if a passport application will be processed for a person (details supplied) ahead of travel time on 6 April 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10128/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 385, 399 and 404 together.
With regard to the specific passport applications referenced by the Deputies, the Passport Service has provided a status update to the applicant.
386. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when a passport application by a person (details supplied) received by the Passport Office on 3 June 2021 will be dealt with in view of the fact that it has an estimated issue date of 25 November; when documents pertaining to the parent of the child will be returned to them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9182/22]
View answerWith regard to the specific application about which the Deputy has enquired, the Passport Service has provided an update to the applicant's parents as to the steps they must take to progress their passport application and on the return of their passports.
387. Deputy James Lawless asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will examine a visa application by a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9214/22]
View answerWith regard to the specific application about which the Deputy has enquired, the Passport Service has issued the passport to the applicant.
388. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason it is now taking up to 40 working days for parents’ passports to be returned to them after the child’s passport has been completely processed and delivered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9284/22]
View answer389. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reasons for completed documents such as the parents’ passports being held by the passport office and not posted when a child’s passport is completed and posted; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9285/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 388 and 389 together.
The Passport Services prioritises dispatching the applicant's passport once it has been issued. Supporting documents submitted with the application are dispatched separately and, depending on current volumes, can take between 2 and 4 weeks to be returned to the applicant or their guardians.
The Passport Service is actively working to reduce the number of original documents required to be submitted with a passport application. The Passport Service now accepts a certified copy of a parent's Irish passport to be submitted with a child's first time application rather than the original. This allows the parent to retain their passport to facilitate any travel they may need to undertake while their child's passport is being processed and while they await the return of documentation.
My Department has been pro-actively planning to ensure the necessary resources are in place to meet the current and expected level of demand in 2022 and is making an unprecedented investment in the Passport Service in terms of additional staff and improvements to the passport processing and customer service systems. This will help to improve customer experience and reduce turnaround times, including the return of supporting documents.
390. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will intervene in the registration of foreign birth application in the case of a person (details supplied). [9374/22]
View answerMy Department is responsible for citizenship by descent through the Foreign Births Register under the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended.
The processing of Foreign Birth Registration (FBR) has resumed and will be gradually scaling up in line with the recruitment of additional resources. Due to the complex nature of the Foreign Birth Registration process, the large increase in applications received following the Brexit vote in the UK, and the pause in the Service due to necessary Covid-19 restrictions, applicants should allow approximately 2 years from the receipt of supporting documentation for processing of Foreign Birth Registration applications at this time. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, and the subsequent reassignment of Foreign Birth Registration staff to assist in the provision of essential passport services, the Foreign Birth Registration Service was paused for nearly 15 months across the 2020-2021 period.
The application referenced was registered on 17 January 2020, and is due to be processed in the near future. A member of the FBR team will be in contact with the applicant shortly in this regard. My Department is fully committed to the continued allocation of additional resources over the coming period to assist with the processing of the Foreign Birth Registration applications currently on hand and the high volume of new applications anticipated this year.
391. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the situation in Maghaberry Jail in which prisoners are being denied open visits despite the fact that Covid-19 restrictions have been lifted in the society outside the prison complex; if he will raise this matter with the authorities to ensure that the visiting regime being currently imposed does not lead to heightened tensions in the jail and that families that have been separated due to Covid-19 are not made to suffer further than needs be; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9424/22]
View answer402. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the discussions he or his officials have had since Christmas 2021 with the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the Northern Ireland Office and with members of the Northern Ireland executive and administration regarding the prison conditions relating to republican prisoners held in HMP Magheraberry and HMP Hydebank Prisons, particularly issues relating to the conditions attaching to family visits, controlled movement, full body searching and educational issues; if these discussions have also covered the issues of extremely long remand and bail periods for prisoners awaiting trial for up to and over seven years in some cases; the response he has received in relation to these matters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10026/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 391 and 402 together.
Responsibility for Maghaberry and Hydebank prisons rests with the Northern Ireland Prison Service, which is overseen by the Northern Ireland Department of Justice.
As is the case with prisons in this jurisdiction, the overriding concern in recent times has been the health and safety within the prisons due to Covid 19. It is understood that Maghaberry Prison has so far had a good record in preventing cases of Covid 19 in the prison. Improvements in educational provision and other practices and procedures have had to be adapted or suspended due to the health and safety arrangements on Covid 19 prevention; it is expected that these will be restored as soon as is practicable.
Prison conditions in Northern Ireland, including for those in Maghaberry and Hydebank prisons, have been part of my regular dialogue with Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. In addition, Departmental officials engage on a regular and ongoing basis with a range of interlocutors across the devolved and non-devolved authorities, including the ICRC to discuss, explore and encourage progress.
The Independent Reporting Commission (IRC), established by treaty between the Irish and British Governments, reports on the implementation of the Northern Ireland Executive’s Tackling Paramilitary Activity, Criminality and Organised Crime Programme. Among the actions under the programme is a commitment from the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland to revisit the framework related to the separated regime and arrange for an independent review of the operation of the regime. The IRC noted in its most recent report (published December 2021) that the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland plans an independent review of the separated regime but that this work would require Ministerial consideration and approval.
392. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason that it took the Passport Office 92 working days to revert to a parent regarding a first-time online passport application for a minor; when this passport will be dispatched; if it will issue in time for their travel plans; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9434/22]
View answerWith regard to the specific passport application about with the Deputy is enquiring, the online application was registered on 22 September 2021. However, the Passport Service cannot process a first time application without any supporting documents. Supporting documents for this application were received on 10 February 2022.
The Passport Service has given the applicant's parent an update on the current status of the application.
393. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when a passport will issue in the case of a person (details supplied).; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9553/22]
View answer395. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will ensure that a passport application by a person (details supplied) in which the original renewal application was made in September 2021 will be processed urgently by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9650/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 393 and 395 together.
With regard to the specific applications about which the Deputies have enquired, the Passport Service has issued passports to the applicants.
394. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the amount his Department has paid for advertising, features and so on in a magazine (details supplied). [9575/22]
View answerMy Department engages in public awareness campaigns where there is important information that needs to be brought to the attention of citizens. Some examples of these campaigns have included the “Getting Ireland Brexit Ready” campaign and public information on travel restrictions due to COVID-19. My Department has not paid for the placement of advertisements, features or other content in the magazine in question.
396. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the Ministers for Defence, Transport or Agriculture, Food and the Marine drew to his attention and that of his Department in the past 20 years the matter of military exercises being carried out in Ireland's exclusive economic zone by foreign armed forces, ahead of, during or after such military exercises; if he had correspondence with the countries involved in relation to Ireland's neutrality, territorial waters and exclusive economic zone, the appropriateness of such exercises and the scope of same; if he or officials from his Department liaised or communicated with each country in relation to the exercises; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9653/22]
View answerUnder the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) a coastal state has only limited sovereign rights and jurisdiction in its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) – a maritime zone extending up to 200 nautical miles from shore. These rights pertain mainly to the exploration, exploitation, conservation and management of natural resources (living and non-living) and the protection of the marine environment. Pursuant to Article 58 of UNCLOS, all states enjoy various high seas freedoms in the coastal state’s EEZ, including freedom of navigation “and other internationally lawful uses of the sea related to these freedoms”. The EEZ is therefore a hybrid maritime zone in which some sovereign rights of the coastal state overlap with high seas freedoms of all states. Article 58 requires that in the exercise of these freedoms states ‘shall have due regard to the rights and duties of the coastal state.’
While states are not obliged, in most cases, to inform the coastal authorities of any proposed naval exercises, my Department’s attention has indeed been drawn to some such exercises that have taken place in Ireland’s EEZ in the past. Where relevant, officials have engaged with the states concerned, including to ensure that any such exercises are conducted with due regard to our own exercise of sovereign rights in the area. Where a planned exercise includes use of international airspace, the state concerned must follow the agreed international procedure (as set down by the International Civil Aviation Organisation) for notifying the relevant authorities responsible for providing air traffic control services for the airspace affected.
I want to take this opportunity to distinguish between this and the situation regarding our territorial sea, which extends up to 12 nautical miles from shore. The coastal state exercises sovereignty within its territorial sea subject to the relevant rules of international law. Within the territorial sea of a coastal state the ships of other states, including their warships, enjoy the right of innocent passage only – not freedom of navigation. This means that naval exercise may not be conducted by them within the territorial sea except with the express consent of the coastal state. The submarines of other states are required to navigate on the surface.
Should a foreign naval or other state vessel used for non-commercial purposes wish to access an Irish port or harbour, my permission is required as Minister for Foreign Affairs, and a diplomatic clearance procedure is in place to consider requests for such permissions.
