Written Answers Nos. 568-579
569. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Justice the number of students in the students of sanctuary programme who have been served with a deportation order during their studies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24849/23]
View answerMy Department does not hold data in the manner requested by the Deputy . However, I can advise that any person, who is the subject of a Deportation Order, can apply to the Minister, under section 3(11) of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended), to have their Deportation Order revoked. Any such request should be founded on new information or changed circumstances which were not raised, when the decision to make a Deportation Order was taken.
570. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Justice the number of students with legal status to remain in Ireland that have gone on to higher education in Ireland in the past two years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24850/23]
View answerMy Department has responsibility for immigration-related matters, including the entry and residence conditions of non-EEA students. My Department engages with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, among other key sectorial stakeholders, in this area.
A Stamp 2 immigration permission is granted to all international non-EEA students regardless of whether they are undertaking an English language course or a third level programme. For a person to be granted a Stamp 2 permission, the course they are enrolled in must be listed on the Interim List of Eligible Programmes (ILEP) which is available on the Immigration Service Delivery website.
While my Department can report on the number of individuals registered and renewed by Stamp category, such as Stamp 2 for study, they are unable to sub-categorise stamp categories further, such as level of education under which a Stamp was granted. Therefore, it is not possible to report on the number of students with an immigration permission that have progressed to higher education in Ireland in the past two years.
573. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Justice given there are currently 857 missing persons and 44 unidentified bodies in Ireland, if he will consider establishing an independent body to review all the files to assist and supplement the work already carried out by An Garda Síochána; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24962/23]
View answerRecently published records of unidentified remains have been made public as part of the annual returns reported by coroners to the Minister. It is important to note that this should not be viewed as being a complete list of all Unidentified Remains which may lie within the state. The data will be subject to amendment as additional information may emerge over the coming months and years.
It is the intention that this information will be updated on an ongoing basis. A new question has also been added to the coroner’s annual statistical returns whereby coroners will be asked to provide details of all unidentified human remains reported to them in the preceding year.
The Department of Justice established a forum in July 2021 alongside An Garda Síochána’s Missing Persons Unit and Forensic Science Ireland (FSI) to facilitate information exchange on unidentified remains.
Further meetings of the stakeholder forum, to include the Coroner Society of Ireland, will be held this year to discuss improvements that may be made in relation to the gathering and sharing of unidentified remains and missing person data.
The Department has no immediate plans to establish a specific unit / centralised office to progress work in this area.
574. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice if he plans to invite the United States National Security Advisor to Ireland before year end. [24977/23]
View answerI can inform the Deputy that there are currently no plans to invite the United States National Security Advisor to Ireland before year end.
As the Deputy will appreciate, Ireland and the United States of America have a strong record of cooperation in relation to justice and security matters. Meetings between relevant officeholders take place from time to time and officials liaise with their counterparts as needed, as do the security services of the State.
575. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice the amount spent on replacement of Garda public order equipment in 2022 and to-date in 2023, in tabular form. [24978/23]
View answerI have contacted An Garda Síochána for the information requested by the Deputy, regretfully this information was not available in time. I will write to the Deputy once the information is to hand.
The following deferred reply was received under Standing Order 51.
As you will recall, Minister Harris had sought the information you requested from the Garda authorities, and undertook to contact you again once the information was to hand. As I have now resumed office as Minister for Justice following my maternity leave, I am responding to your question. As you will be aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the administration and management of An Garda Síochána, including the purchase, allocation, and effective and efficient use of Garda resources. As Minister for Justice, I have no role in such matters.
I am advised by the Garda authorities that a total of €141,016.35 was spent by the Garda authorities on the replacement of Garda public order equipment in 2022 and a total of €701,319.31 has been spent in this year up to 23 May.
I trust this information is of assistance.
576. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice the number of Garda cars and motorcycles attached to each Garda divisional roads policing unit as of 18 May 2023, in tabular form. [24979/23]
View answerThe Government is committed to ensuring An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to deliver a modern, fit-for-purpose, policing service. Budget 2023 provides funding of €2.14 billion for An Garda Síochána, of which €10m has been allocated for investment in the Garda fleet.
As the Deputy will be aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the administration and management of An Garda Síochána, including the purchase, allocation, and effective and efficient use of Garda vehicles. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.
The table below, provided to me by the Garda authorities, sets out the number of cars and motorcycles attached to each Garda Divisional Roads Policing unit at 30 April 2023, the latest date for which figures are available.
|
Division |
Cars |
Motorcycles |
|
Cavan/Monaghan |
8 |
4 |
|
Clare |
3 |
1 |
|
Cork City |
8 |
9 |
|
Cork North |
12 |
3 |
|
Cork West |
7 |
2 |
|
DMR East |
4 |
0 |
|
DMR North |
5 |
0 |
|
DMR North Central |
4 |
0 |
|
DMR South |
2 |
0 |
|
DMR South Central |
2 |
0 |
|
DMR Traffic |
18 |
46 |
|
DMR West |
5 |
0 |
|
GNRBP |
2 |
0 |
|
Fleet Management |
0 |
1 |
|
Donegal |
5 |
4 |
|
Galway |
10 |
6 |
|
HRM |
2 |
8 |
|
Kerry |
5 |
3 |
|
Kildare |
7 |
2 |
|
Kilkenny/Carlow |
6 |
1 |
|
Laois-Offaly |
7 |
4 |
|
Limerick |
6 |
5 |
|
Louth |
8 |
2 |
|
Mayo/Roscommon/Longford |
12 |
5 |
|
Meath |
4 |
2 |
|
Sligo/Leitrim |
7 |
3 |
|
Tipperary |
8 |
4 |
|
Waterford |
6 |
3 |
|
Westmeath |
6 |
2 |
|
Wexford |
8 |
2 |
|
Wicklow |
4 |
2 |
|
Total: |
191 |
124 |
I am advised that the purchase and allocation of vehicles by An Garda Síochána is made on the basis of identified operational demands, the availability of resources and is reviewed on a continual basis.
577. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Justice if he will consider changes to general employment permits to allow those coming to work as health care assistants to bring their spouses and children to live in the State by amending income criteria in line with the wage rate in private nursing homes; if he will consider waiving the need for qualified nurses to undertake QQI level 5 training as health care assistants (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25010/23]
View answerAs the Deputy notes, the position in regard to applications of this nature is set out in the Policy Document for Non-EEA Family Reunification, which is available on my Department's website. The policy, which was last amended in 2016, is currently under review.
The policy document sets out the rationale for applying resource requirements as part of the overall assessment of whether to approve an application for family reunification. In general terms, the sponsor must demonstrate their capacity to provide for their family member(s) if they are to be granted a permission to come to Ireland.
As a guideline, Category B sponsors such as those on General Employment Permits, regardless of occupation, must have a gross income in excess of that applied by the Department of Social Protection (DSP) in assessing eligibility for the Working Family Payment (formerly Family Income Supplement). In examining such applications, my Department applies the DSP income levels current at the time of assessment.
My Department has no responsibility for setting the educational qualifications or training requirements for Health Care Assistants or any other profession.
578. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when he expects to be in a position to make decisions on TAMS 3 applications for the installation of solar PV panels on farms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24018/23]
View answerThe Solar Capital Investment Scheme opened Wednesday 22nd February 2023. It is anticipated that the first Tranche of TAMS 3 including the solar investment scheme will close on 16th June. The scheme does not operate on a first come first served basis and all applications will go through a ranking and selection process after the closing date. Selected applications will then receive an approval letter in due course.
579. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will confirm targets for land use associated with the growing of crops for 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025; and his proposed measures to reach those targets. [24055/23]
View answerIn 2022, the area under tillage crops was 348,500 hectares which represents a 6% increase on the area planted in 2021. My Department has not set individual yearly targets for the growing of tillage crops, however, maintaining the current crop area with an ambition to grow this area in the years ahead is an important strategic objective of mine and my Department. This is highlighted in the Food Vision 2030 Strategy and more recently in the Climate Action Plan where a target has been set of up to 360,000 hectares of tillage by 2025 and up to 400,000 hectares by 2030.
The tillage sector is a sector that I have backed with new and innovative schemes in recent times including the Straw Incorporation Measure (SIM) and the Tillage Incentive Scheme (TIS). In the new CAP Strategic Plan, I secured an increase in the budget of the Protein Aid Scheme from €3m to €7m. Our new Agri-Environmental Scheme (ACRES) includes a broad range of actions that are relevant to tillage farmers while the new Tillage Capital Investment Scheme under TAMS contains a broader range of investments and a higher investment ceiling of €90,000.
To help deliver my ambition to grow the sector to 400,000 hectares by 2030, I recently established the Food Vision 2030 Tillage Group which held its first meeting on Thursday 11 May 2023. This group will bring together all relevant stakeholders to set out a roadmap for the sustainable growth and development of the sector to 2030. I have tasked the group with providing a detailed plan and recommendations by the end of July with a final report to be submitted during the final quarter of 2023.
