Vol. 1064 No. 5
118. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Justice how he intends to address the prevalence of drugs in rural Ireland and its consequences on community safety and criminality in rural areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12683/25]
I wish the Minister and Ministers of State well in their new roles. I compliment An Garda Síochána, the Revenue Commissioners and other statutory agencies on the work being done locally and nationally to deal with the scourge of drugs. As we all know, drug addiction and drug abuse are very complex issues and we need a multifaceted approach that includes health services rehabilitation as well as the criminal justice system. I ask the Minister to outline any additional measures that will be implemented locally and nationally to deal with what is a growing and very concerning epidemic at present throughout rural and urban Ireland.
I thank the Deputy for his long-standing interest in this issue and for raising it. Tackling the scourge of drug dealing and targeting the work of organised crime groups, which inflict intimidation, violence and misery on families and communities in rural Ireland, is a top priority for the Government and our Department. As part of budget 2025, €36 million has been allocated to youth justice services. This investment will facilitate an increase in the capacity of youth diversion projects for the young people who need them the most, as well as increased supports for families and early interventions for children who may be at increased risk of becoming engaged in criminal activity. This approach is strongly supported by evidence from the University of Limerick. The projects are community-based, multiagency youth crime prevention initiatives that primarily seek to divert young people at risk of involvement in antisocial or criminal behaviour, or both. I was very pleased to announce two new projects last month, which will achieve the target set out in the Youth Justice Strategy 2021-2027 of full national coverage.
The Government is also fully committed to providing An Garda Síochána with the resources it needs to fight crime. This is reflected in the unprecedented allocation of €2.48 billion in budget 2025. That was a 27% increase in budget since 2020. We were delighted to witness 149 new gardaí passing out of Templemore two weeks ago and to see more than 200 trainees, the largest intake since 2019, enter the Garda College recently. This increase in Garda numbers is allowing for sustained investment in front-line policing and in specialist units such as the very successful drugs and organised crime bureau. An Garda Síochána continues to implement the enhanced national anti-drugs strategy in Operation Tara, the focus of which is to disrupt, dismantle and prosecute drug trafficking networks at all levels, namely, international, national and local, that are involved in the importation, distribution, cultivation, production, local sale and supply of controlled drugs.
The Department of Health leads on Government policy in the area of drugs, and this policy is guided by the whole-of-government national drugs and alcohol strategy, which sets out a health-led response to drug and alcohol use.
I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I look forward to more youth justice projects being rolled out. They are a great investment in our young people and a great investment in communities where there is particular disadvantage.
As the Minister of State will be aware, this issue needs to be addressed with the utmost urgency. It is really heartbreaking to listen to parents, siblings and family members who have lost loved ones through the use of drugs. They are victims of the people who are peddling drugs and causing untold hardship in every community. I recalled in this House previously that I listened to a mother who lost her son and husband. She outlined very clearly the role drugs played in their deaths. They were two young people. It is absolutely appalling. We also need more awareness campaigns, and not just for teenagers or young adults. Based on what I hear in weekly conversations, we need campaigns for every age group in the country. We are hearing daily of the prevalence of drugs in places we never thought they would be present. The Government has an obligation to provide safer communities for all and the one thing we hear about nowadays is that drugs are everywhere.
The Deputy represents a Border constituency and I re-emphasise there is ongoing close co-operation between An Garda Síochána and the Police Service of Northern Ireland to tackle cross-Border criminality, including through the mechanism of the joint agency task force established under the 2015 Northern Ireland Fresh Start Agreement. This task force is producing results and helping to keep people safe in really practical, visible ways through customs seizures, identifying victims of human trafficking and joint days of action against organised crime groups. North-South co-operation in policing and criminal justice continues to be a priority for the Government. The Minister met his counterpart in Northern Ireland, the Minister, Naomi Long MLA, last week to discuss how best to combat serious and organised crime on our island. We look forward to continued co-operation on that.
I thank the Minister of State and again welcome his emphasis on the need for intensified cross-Border co-operation because we know these evil criminals who are peddling drugs across borders. There should be no tolerance for people who are peddling drugs and passing around cannabis or a line of cocaine, whatever social stratum they come from. We have all listened to presentations where professionals working in this area outline the horrors inflicted on people through the use of drugs. We need to get that message out very clearly.
I fully appreciate that we need to support people who unfortunately become addicted through different facets of their existence and of their lives. I have helped some of those people, alongside local support groups, in my constituency of Cavan-Monaghan and across the north east. We need to resource the advocacy groups who are working with parents and with victims of the use of drugs. I know people who have recovered who are in gainful employment today, rearing their families and contributing to society. Thankfully, we have those instances where people with adequate supports can recover. We want to ensure in all policies that we do not lose sight of the fact that people can recover with adequate supports. At the same time, we cannot lose sight of the fact that criminal gangs and the people I mentioned earlier who are peddling death and destruction in every community in our country must be dealt with through a severe criminal justice system.
We have to be absolutely straight in the sense that Ireland at the minute is absolutely awash with cocaine and when we are dealing with addicts who would previously have had an issue with heroin. We are probably talking about crack cocaine and that obviously leads to a particular set of issues particularly as regards crime and the impact on the wider community. I agree with Deputy Smith. He is probably talking about the family addiction support network that we have both engaged with and that deals with families who are suffering because of the issues caused by addiction. We could not have enough resources for youth diversion projects such as those being operated at The House in Cox's Demesne Youth and Community Project, Muirhevnamore and beyond at this time. We need to get absolutely real. We are talking a multiagency approach. We need to deal with the fact of ongoing criminality, the bad examples that exist that we are all aware and know of. We have seen examples of where the Criminal Assets Bureau has taken action. We need to see more of that. I have seen drug dealers who have had houses taken off them. It is just the cost of doing business and then they are back in action again. I have spoken to the senior Minister before about the chaos caused by drug addiction and by criminality and pointed out that we do not have the powers, whether we are talking about Tusla, the councils or right across to An Garda Síochána. There needs to be a real conversation. We need a real plan to deal with all of us.
Deputy Smith has referenced community safety and criminality in rural areas in particular, as has Deputy Ó Murchú. I reiterate that rural and community safety is not just a job for An Garda Síochána alone. It requires a multiagency, multisectoral and a whole-of-government response. Supporting the work of our national rural safety forum, the Department of Justice first published the Rural Safety Plan 2022-2024. That plan has a vision to ensure people in communities in Ireland feel safe and are safe in their homes, in places of work and in their local environment. It does so by identifying five key areas on which we will focus to achieve the overall goal. These are: community safety, burglary and theft, roads policing, animal crime and heritage crime. We are going to produce a second rural safety plan for 2025 to 2027 later this year and we can speak further about that in due course.
120. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Justice the plans in place for Garda stations in east Galway that currently have no gardaí assigned to them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12713/25]
I raise an issue currently in Galway East around Garda stations that currently have no gardaí assigned to them. These buildings are lying vacant and empty. I mention three in particular, namely, Ardrahan, Eyrecourt and Ahascragh. These Garda stations currently have no gardaí assigned to them. Are there any plans in place to ensure they are staffed and that they serve the communities they were built to serve?
I thank the Deputy for his question. I assure him the Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. Our budget for 2025 saw an unprecedented level of funding of €2.48 billion for the year which, as I referenced previously, is a 27% increase since 2020. I have also referenced that we had 149 new gardaí passed out two weeks ago and that we saw more than 200 trainees enter Templemore in the past number of days.
While the Garda Commissioner is operationally responsible for the allocation of Garda resources, we engage with him regularly to ensure our gardaí have the resources they need. We are informed that when allocating and transferring Garda members to and from any division, consideration is given to the commitments and undertakings outlined in the annual policing plan. Garda authorities have informed us that the four stations referred to by the Deputy currently have no gardaí assigned to them but it is crucial to note that these areas are still being actively policed. Gardaí attached to larger stations within the Galway county east community engagement area, supplemented by the Galway division roads policing unit, the Galway division crime unit and the Galway division drugs unit, respond to policing needs in the communities referred to. The divisional officer will consider the allocation of gardaí to these stations with the Galway county east community engagement area should additional resources be allocated to the Galway division. The new operating model is intended to release more front-line gardaí, provide a stronger focus on community policing and transform the delivery of policing services locally. It reflects best international practice and will ensure each division has the resources and skills to deliver a wide range of community policing and specialist services based on the demands in their area.
I really appreciate the investment that is being made in An Garda Síochána and I appreciate the drive that is currently taking place to recruit more gardaí. I welcome the fact that those rural stations mentioned will be considered in future allocations. What is important as well is that these are fine buildings and they have an opportunity to provide accommodation for young gardaí. A big issue is that if these buildings are not used, they will fall into disrepair and will not be maintained. I see it right across Galway East where these Garda stations were lived in. They provided a vital service and allowed people to embed themselves in the community. That community policing thing is something that is really important in our constituency because people want to know their local gardaí. They want to be connected to them and they want to know that when they need to access forms or paper work to be signed, they can do so. I really appreciate any commitment that can be given to Galway East Garda stations.
The Deputy is correct to raise the issues that impact on his constituency. There is no doubt that the three of us here on the Front Bench are taking note of what he is saying and we will convey his views to the Garda Commissioner. To reiterate, a number of years ago, this House passed a major Bill, which means the entire operational side of An Garda Síochána is in the gift of the Garda Commissioner and his office. It is he and his team who decide upon the allocation of manpower within each Garda division and the number of gardaí to be allocated right across the country. That is something into which we do not have direct input. As a public representative, the Deputy is entitled to, and is right to, raise the concerns he and his constituents have. At the end of the day, we are all practising constituency politicians also and we want to see our own areas policed effectively. That is why the top line job of Government is, which is set out within the programme for Government, that we want to drive recruitment. We are doing everything we can to do that. I have outlined to the Deputy what we are doing. The programme for Government sets out very ambitious plans to get more men and women into An Garda Síochána, to have them attested and policing our front lines and to get them out into our streets in our towns and cities and across our rural communities.
I appreciate it is the Commissioner's role to allocate the divisional split across the country. One idea the Government could consider for the future is, similar to how in Galway County Council we have our rural library scheme whereby people can access books in their community on a weekly basis, we should have a community policy service where a van would go around to every community in Galway East and other constituencies. What would happen is that people could use this at a set time, they would know it would be there and they would be able to access forms, get their passport stamped and get relevant documents sorted.
This service is not currently being provided in many rural stations. In east Galway, people currently have to travel to Athenry or to another constituency like Oranmore to access it. If this service was in communities where people knew about it, they would access it. I would appreciate the Minister's consideration of this. Maybe it is something he could raise with the Commissioner as well.
This is absolutely something we can raise in our next discussion with the Garda Commissioner and his team. In my own experience, I have seen many community outreach and engagement activities by An Garda Síochána so it is not something beyond their capabilities. I do not see any reason why it cannot be done and we will certainly offer that as a suggestion.
125. Deputy Peter 'Chap' Cleere asked the Minister for Justice the number of gardaí currently assigned to stations in counties Kilkenny and Carlow; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12596/25]
I congratulate all Ministers on their new elevations and I wish them well in their posts.
My question today specifically relates to the Kilkenny-Carlow constituency and the number of gardaí currently assigned to stations in both of these counties.
I thank the Deputy for his question. The introduction of the new garda operating model, which has been rolled out in the Kilkenny-Carlow Garda division, will provide more front-line gardaí, increased Garda visibility and a wider range of policing services for people in Carlow and Kilkenny.
It is important to emphasise this supports greater service delivery across the division through four functional areas, one of the most important being community engagement. This will allow for a greater, more consistent focus on community policing in all divisions.
I am informed that as of 31 January 2025, the number of gardaí assigned to Kilkenny and Carlow is 313 members. There are also 52 garda staff assigned to the division, an increase of 92% since 2015. Garda staff working alongside gardaí, carry out vital roles to increase availability of gardaí for front-line duties.
It is also important to state that a total of 98 vehicles are allocated to the Kilkenny-Carlow division, including 38 marked cars, 37 unmarked, 19 vans, two motorcycles, one 4x4 and one other SUV or minivan used for prisoner transportation.
As the Deputy can see, considerable investment is being provided. I am aware from speaking to him the importance of having greater Garda visibility on the ground in Kilkenny and Carlow. The way we will achieve this is by getting recruitment up to An Garda Síochána. We must try to get more people to join An Garda Síochána. It is a great career and I am sure there are many people in Carlow and Kilkenny who would consider it as a career. We as TDs have an obligation to encourage people to consider a career in An Garda Síochána because unless we get the numbers, we will not be able to provide the level of community and general policing we wish to see.
The recent drive for new entrant Garda numbers was hugely successful and very welcome. My appeal to the Minister is that when these filter down through the system, that as many as possible are filtered to rural towns and villages. We have 18 Garda stations in Kilkenny and eight in Carlow, operating at varying different levels. One station in my own town of Graiguenamanagh, which is a substation of the Thomastown office that also covers Goresbridge, a couple of years ago had two sergeants and ten gardaí. At present, we have only one sergeant and four gardaí in that area.
In the town of Goresbridge, which is just down the road from me, the Garda station opens for one hour, twice every eight days. We are talking about community policing and while I absolutely agree with the Minister with regard to getting recruitment up, we need visibility and people on the ground. I implore him to encourage as much filtration down the country as possible.
I am interested in what the Deputy said about the reduction in numbers in Graiguenamanagh and other areas in Kilkenny. I will keep a close eye on this. When people are attested as members of An Garda Síochána, the Commissioner decides where they should be allocated. It is extremely important there is fair allocation throughout the country. It is not an operational matter for me and I cannot get involved in that but I hear what Deputy Cleere is saying loud and clear in respect of the need to get more new recruits into our rural areas.
We could see an increase in recruitment to the force. On 10 March, 201 new recruits started in Templemore. This is the highest we have seen since 2019 and is an indication that numbers are increasing. The recruitment campaign run throughout February was very successful. We had 6,784 applicants and I hope to see good numbers coming through. However, I hear the Deputy loud and clear on getting more gardaí on the ground in Kilkenny and Carlow.
I welcome the news of 200 new entrants. We would be more than happy to accept those into Carlow and Kilkenny in one blow if the Minister wanted to use it as a pilot scheme.
In all seriousness, I am encouraged by the recent recruitment campaign and that brings peace of mind, especially for our older and more vulnerable people in communities right across the constituency. They love seeing gardaí on the ground and that visibility on the beat. Whenever there is an event and gardaí are sourced, people feel safe. It is our duty to make sure we continue to support those Garda stations.
Finally, a couple of Garda stations are currently not operational. If the Minister could have a look at that to ensure all 18 Garda stations in Kilkenny and the eight in Carlow have some sort of physical presence on a regular basis, it would be much appreciated by the local communities they represent on the ground.
Garda properties are valuable resources. If we have them, we should use them for the benefit of the State or the benefit of the public in having a Garda presence there. I will raise that issue with my Department.
The Deputy also made a very valid point about how the public want to see members of An Garda Síochána on the ground. We sometimes take that for granted. In many countries, communities do not want to see their police force on the ground. In Ireland, it is completely different. Every Deputy will say that when they are at a public meeting on policing, the one thing the public wants to see is more gardaí on the street. That is a reflection of the good relationship the Garda has with the public. It is something we must cherish and we must ensure we preserve it because if that relationship is lost, it will be very hard to get back. We are in the fortunate position that we have such a good relationship and I am committed to improving it, assisting the Garda and keeping that level of public support going.
123. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice his plans to increase the training intake capacity for An Garda Síochána; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12801/25]
Further to the previous debate, I hope the Minister will accept what I consider to be an absolute fact and that is we now have a clear and ongoing crisis in respect of Garda numbers and in particular Garda visibility within our communities. That crisis will not be addressed unless we substantially increase the training uptake capacity for An Garda Síochána. What measures does the Minister intend to apply in order to achieve this?
It is important to remember we have civilianised much of the Garda force. At present, we have approximately 14,200 attested members of An Garda Síochána and approximately 3,500 civilian members who also work for the force.
In recent years, as a result of civilianising or using civilians for tasks that were previously performed by the gardaí, we have managed to get approximately 900 gardaí back out on front-line duties. This is one mechanism but we need to be smart in terms of ensuring we can get more attested gardaí out on the streets. We do not want to see them in offices or courtrooms; we want to see them out on the ground.
Regrettably, one of the consequences of having a very successful economy is it is hard to attract people into certain jobs. There is some change coming, however, in this regard. People are now becoming aware of the fulfilment they can get from a career within An Garda Síochána. As I mentioned in response to Deputy Cleere, the recruitment process that took place throughout February has been successful. A total of 6,700 people applied to An Garda Síochána, which is a good sign.
As I said earlier, on 10 March, 201 new recruits started in Templemore. That is the highest number we have seen since 2019 and is an indication we are getting numbers back up to what they can be. Templemore can take 225 recruits through each module and we could have four or five of them. Many gardaí can be trained in Templemore each year. I will also consider other mechanisms, however, and I have asked for a report from the Department in respect of how we can train gardaí elsewhere.
This is not in any way seeking to question or undermine the appropriateness of Templemore. That will always remain. However, we need to consider whether there are other mechanisms for training people within An Garda Síochána that do not require them to spend all that time in Templemore. They are issues I am considering. However, I am open to any innovative ideas Deputy Carthy has as to how we can get the numbers up because, as he knows, it is hard to recruit people. We need to get people into An Garda Síochána and I would encourage the Deputy, and in fairness I know he will do this, to try to encourage people to join because it is a fulfilling career.
It absolutely is. A career in An Garda Síochána has the potential to be a very fulfilling life experience. However, the difficulty is not people applying to join An Garda Síochána but, with due respect to the Minister, it is the intake capacity and the experience of some people who apply but who do not make it into Templemore - in other words, they have a negative experience which they convey to others that would in time prevent them from following suit. Some 750 recruits left Templemore in 2023. Last year, 2024, the number was 631. The strength of the force at the end of 2024 was just about 14,000 which is only 200 more than at the start of the year and 500 less than when Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael formally came into government in 2020.
I note that in recent weeks the Commissioner said that it will not be possible to meet the Government goal of 1,000 new members this year and it is likely to be as low as 800. The Minister is on record as saying that he wants to see an additional 5,000 gardaí by the end of this Dáil term. It is incumbent on him to say, given the current parameters, how the hell he is going to make that happen.
I thank the Deputy. I am conscious of the intake capacity into Templemore. As I said, if we can get 225 in each time, they would be very good numbers. Recently, we have been getting up to 201 and we are doing very well.
The Deputy mentioned the numbers of attestations for 2023 and 2024. The 2023 number was higher than 2024. That was because in 2023 there were five attestations as opposed to four in 2024. Sometimes there can be an alteration in figures because of the fact there were more attestations in a particular year.
I have said that my objective is, and it is in the programme for Government, to secure the recruitment of 5,000 gardaí during the course of this Government, over five years. It is an ambitious task. I am seeking to achieve it. Part of the method by which I am doing it is through the recruitment campaign. The first recruitment campaign has been a success. The second way I am seeking to do it is to try to encourage people to join. The third way we are seeking to do it is that we have improved the training stipend for gardaí when they are in Templemore. We have increased that and we will consider increasing it further. Many steps are being taken.
We also need to be honest. There are consequences to operating in an economy with full employment. People have lots of options. However, we have to get people into An Garda Síochána.
Government representatives have increasingly cited the increase in population as a rationale behind the increase in crime figures. For example, earlier this morning the Minister cited it as an explanation for the increase in the number of people offending while out on bail. Yet, we have a Government target that has 15,000 members of An Garda Síochána, a target that is nowhere near being met at the moment. Surely the Minister accepts that target is not enough considering the increase in population and what are very clear demands from communities all over the State, who do not see enough gardaí within their communities at present.
At some point, will the Minister give the Dáil a comprehensive report and update on the work of the Garda recruitment training capacity planning group? He mentioned some aspects of potentially expanding Templemore or changing the way it functions but have there been any real deliberations in terms of the potential of opening a second Garda training college? That is something that I think would be very appropriate and much needed.
I thank the Deputy. I will deal with the last point first. A recruitment and training capacity group has been established to support the achievement of increased recruitment in An Garda Síochána. The group is due to report to me in mid-2025. It is looking at a range of issues, including how to ensure that there is the training capacity to meet the Government's ambitious recruitment targets for the next five years. One of the issues that I know it will look at is whether or not an alternative training college or institution would be of benefit in trying to get more gardaí in. That will, to a large extent, depend on the level of interest we get from members of the public seeking to join.
In regard to the Deputy's comments about the population, of course, that is going to require there to be greater policing. As the population increases and as we create more criminal offences here in this House, there needs to be greater numbers of gardaí. However, we also need to look at innovative methods. We should not underestimate the role being played by civilians within the force. For too many years, gardaí were doing jobs that could be done by civilians, such as HR, management and accounting jobs. Those are now being done by civilians. The benefit of getting civilians in to do these tasks is that we get more members of An Garda Síochána out on the streets. As I said, because of increased civilianisation over the past number of years, we have seen up to 900 gardaí get out onto front-line duties. That is the approach. We need to look at innovative measures and to try to recruit more numbers. I still have a target of 15,000 attested members in the force and a target of trying to recruit 5,000 members during the course of the Government.
126. Deputy Cathy Bennett asked the Minister for Justice the number of domestic abuse refuge spaces in the State; his target for the delivery of additional refuge spaces by year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12811/25]
I congratulate the Minister on his new post. Will the Minister outline the current capacity of domestic violence refuge spaces and his intentions to increase this to an adequate standard?
I thank Deputy Bennett. I welcome the fact that she has asked me a question related to domestic and gender-based violence. It is an extremely important issue. My predecessor did much excellent work in that area. It is an area that I am committed to working on as well. The Deputy will be aware that there have been a number of developments in Ireland in recent years in respect of combating domestic violence, for instance, a key priority for me and for Cuan is the development of domestic violence refuges throughout the country but in particular in the Cavan and Monaghan region. Cuan is working with the key stakeholders, including Safe Ireland, the Department of housing, Cavan and Monaghan County Councils and the Housing Agency to progress the development of an eight-unit refuge in the region which will also include community-facing ancillary support services. Cuan has worked with Safe Ireland to fund and resource a project manager post and a change manager post in addition to supporting the organisation to form the local partnership that is needed to drive the project. Last November we welcomed the start of a site selection process for this refuge. That process is ongoing. Developments will also include safe home accommodation as both I and Cuan are aware of the need for services to be accessible to those living in rural areas.
It is important to point out that Cuan has been providing funding to Safe Ireland in Cavan and Monaghan. Last year funding of more than €230,000 was provided to Safe Ireland in Cavan and Monaghan, which operates a support service delivery, delivering advocacy, accompaniment, outreach support and information regarding options. In Monaghan, the Castleblayney area is supported by a number of Cuan's funded services, including the national 24-hour domestic violence helpline, which is operated by Women's Aid. In addition, emergency refuge accommodation services are available in the neighbouring town of Dundalk. Part 8 planning permission has been granted for the development of a new domestic violence shelter in Dundalk, comprising 16 units and six replacement units.
I am delighted to hear that the Minister is committed. I hope he will be able to make the necessary changes. The Government delivered seven spaces by the end of 2023. It delivered 12 in 2024. The language I have heard the Minister use referring to 54 units under construction, or due for refurbishment this year, suggests to me a net increase of less than 54. In the best case scenario that would mean he plans to deliver nearly 70 next year.
However, it is also the case that this target seems ambitious only in terms of how low the bar has been set. The Istanbul Convention suggests Ireland should have in excess of 500 spaces. Is the Minister confident in meeting the 2026 target? Does he accept that it must be an interim target?
We should look at where we are. At present, we have approximately 159 refuge units. As I said, another 54 are set to be either under construction or are due for refurbishment in 2025. This will bring the total number of units, including those under construction, to 213 by the end of the year.
In addition to the development of refuge spaces, Cuan and I are committed to delivering additional safe homes which provide appropriate accommodation in certain circumstances. Cuan is concluding a review of domestic violence accommodation delivery and development and is working closely with my Department and the Department of housing to look at what measures need to be accelerated in order to meet the target by the end of the strategy.
We are seeking ways to streamline processes and speed up delivery of domestic violence accommodation. The target is 280. That is the ambition. I hope to be able to meet it. I am committed to trying to meet it. Obviously, we are doing as much as we can to ensure that we can get there.
I again put it to the Minister that 280 is well below the 500 needed under the Istanbul Convention. A number of weeks ago, I sought a Dáil debate on the provision of these services in my constituency of Cavan-Monaghan. The Minister will be familiar with the fact that the people in our community are among those without any refuge spaces at all. It is a deep concern that the current ambition of the Government is that the people of both counties will continue to go without. This arises directly as a result of not only the Government's lack of delivery but also the Minister's lack of ambition. The Minister has set an inadequate target. As a result, the people in Cavan and Monaghan will bear the brunt of inadequate capacity. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan is the responsible Minister. Will he commit to opening a refuge in Cavan and another in Monaghan?
We need to be clear. The previous Minister for Justice committed to ensuring that there would be at least one refuge in every county. In January, Cuan confirmed to me what the Minister has repeated here, namely that rather than delivering one refuge in both Cavan and Monaghan, the plan has changed to one centre between the two counties. That is not good enough, particularly when we consider the circumstances that would lead somebody needing to enter a domestic violence refuge. If a person lives in Carrickmacross and the centre is in Belturbet, the distance between the two is 67 km. That is further than the distance from this House to Navan. That is not acceptable, particularly in view of the disruption that is arises in the context of school life. The two counties we are talking about have virtually no interconnectivity in terms of public transport. This must be taken into consideration in light of, as I say, the emergency situations in which people may find themselves. Will the Minister revert to the commitment given by his predecessor not to deliver a centre for between Cavan and Monaghan, which is taking far too long, but, rather, to deliver one for Cavan and one for Monaghan? The latter is the minimum that is required.
My priority is to get a domestic violence refuge for the Cavan and Monaghan region as quickly as possible. The Deputy is looking for two. We need to get one in there, I would have thought, immediately and promptly. That is what I am working on. As stated, a lot of work is being done with key stakeholders in terms of progressing the development of an eight-unit refuge for the region that would include community-facing ancillary support services. I am committing to putting one refuge in the region.
I note what Deputy Bennett said about the Istanbul Convention. I would be interested in discovering what is the level of compliance with the requirements of the Istanbul Convention in other countries. I would be surprised if they were all in compliance.
So, because they do not do it, we do not do it either.
We are trying to do it. We have a target of getting up to 280. That is the target I am seeking to achieve. I understand the concerns of Deputies Bennett and Carthy regarding the fact that there is not a refuge centre in Cavan-Monaghan. The Minister of State, Deputy Niamh Smyth, has spoken to me about this. Deputy Brendan Smith has done so as well. This is something I want to expedite. I want to ensure that there is one there.
Once we get one in the region, the Deputy can start advocating for others. However, I cannot give her a commitment at present that there will be one in each country. I need to get one into the region.
The commitment was already given.
127. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Justice if he will provide an update on the progress of section 50 regulations required to open up and facilitate the transfer of a PSNI officer to the ranks of An Garda Síochána; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12512/25]
We have seen an exceptional Garda recruitment campaign recently in February. I commend the Minister and An Garda Síochána on this. However, there are ready-made police officers and there is a barrier to them becoming gardaí. Can the Minister provide an update on the progress of section 50 regulations required to open up and facilitate the transfer of a PSNI officer to the ranks of An Garda Síochána and will he make a statement on the matter?
As the Deputy will be aware, the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act, which was enacted by the Houses of the Oireachtas last year, is yet to be commenced. I intend to commence it shortly. The new Act continues to honour Ireland’s commitments under the existing 2002 agreement between the Irish and British Governments on police co-operation. When the Act is commenced, section 94 will allow the Garda Commissioner, at the request of the Chief Constable of the PSNI, to appoint a member of the PSNI as a member of An Garda Síochána on secondment for a period of not more than three years.
My Department is preparing regulations to facilitate, in line with the 2002 agreement, serving PSNI members who have served at or above the rank of inspector for a minimum period of two years to be eligible to enter competitions for appointment to the rank of superintendent in Garda Síochána. These regulations will also provide that serving PSNI members who have served at the rank of superintendent or above for a minimum period of two years will be able to enter competitions for appointment to the rank of chief superintendent or assistant Garda commissioner in the Garda Síochána.
The Deputy raised specifically section 50 of the Act. In order that other Members will be aware, section 50 provides for the continuation of certain powers of the Commissioner to appoint persons to ranks below superintendent as currently set out in section 14 of the 2005 Garda Síochána Act. Section 50 will ensure the Commissioner can continue to exercise these functions, while also ensuring the continuation of service of any person appointed under the current provisions.
There is currently no provision for the direct transfer or promotion on a permanent basis of serving PSNI officers at the rank of sergeant or below into An Garda Síochána. This position will, in consultation with my United Kingdom and Northern Ireland counterparts, be kept under review. I thank the Deputy for the question.
While I appreciate that the Minister will be consulting with his counterparts in the UK, at a time when we have an acute shortage of gardaí and require additional officers, there are members of the PSNI who wish to become gardaí. They are living in the Republic and commuting to the North. They are ready-made police officers ready to act.
There are many such members. One in particular who I am aware of has been writing to and speaking with the PSNI, An Garda Síochána, the Department of Justice and the Policing Authority for over ten years seeking a pathway of transfer from the PSNI to An Garda Síochána. We have an invisible border on this island. This is a situation where consultation further down the line is not sufficient for existing members of the PSNI who wish to become members of An Garda Síochána.
The Deputy makes a valid point. We are at a stage where we are trying to recruit as many members into An Garda Síochána as we can. The Deputy has indicated that there are serving PSNI officers living in this jurisdiction who would like to become members of An Garda Síochána. At present, their difficulty is that in order to become a member of An Garda Síochána through the standard route, they would have to go to Templemore. That would involve them having to give up their jobs in the PSNI, which would be extremely difficult. I appreciate the significance and import of what the Deputy is saying.
Section 50 states that the Garda Commissioner may appoint, in accordance with such matters as may be contained in regulations in relation to such appointments, persons to any rank below the rank of chief superintendent. I will consult with the senior management in An Garda Síochána. I would like to know if there are many members of the PSNI living in this jurisdiction who would like to transfer over. Obviously, there would have to be certain requirements in order for them to do so. I would have thought that if those requirements can be met, it would be a useful method of trying to increase numbers on the force. I will consult with the Commissioner and my Department in respect of the matter.
I thank the Minister. I appreciate him looking into this matter in more detail. I will work with him outside the House in respect of the case to which I refer.
The number involved is not huge. To my knowledge, it is in the teens. These are people who are working in the PSNI. They have spent a lifetime in policing and have a considerable amount of experience that could contribute a great deal to both community and specialised policing in this jurisdiction.
I will work with the Minister on the particular case to which I refer. I would appreciate it if he would bring it to the attention of the Garda Commissioner. I would also appreciate it if we could look at a more formalised pathway in the future to allow members of the PSNI transfer to An Garda Síochána and to allow members of An Garda Síochána to move to the PSNI, where appropriate, as well.
Another relevant point is that there is nothing stopping people in the North who are not in the PSNI from applying to become members of An Garda Síochána. I suspect the terms and conditions of An Garda Síochána are more favourable than those relating to people who join the PSNI. That is something we need to focus on. People from the North are welcome to apply to seek to join An Garda Síochána.
I will go back to the Commissioner and I will also discuss the matter with officials in my Department. I would be interested to know, because it is not a statistic we have, how many PSNI officers are living in the South who would be interested in joining An Garda Síochána. The Deputy indicated that one he knows has been writing to various entities. I would have thought individuals should write to express an ambition or desire to join An Garda Síochána. I would think that would prompt a response from Garda management.
128. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Justice further to Parliamentary Question No. 507 of 4 March 2025, his views on whether the rights of the child and the best interest principle are met by mandating the consent of both parents in cases (details supplied); if the current position can be reviewed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12510/25]
This is a matter I raised with the Minister on 4 March by way of a question for written reply. It relates to the mandated requirement for two parents to give consent for certain processes or assessments, even passport applications, in circumstances where one of the parents is either absent or estranged from the family. It can be very difficult for both parents to sign those forms. This disproportionately affects women. Can this be reviewed?
This is an important question. The issue to which it relates is sensitive in terms of how it can be dealt with. The guardianship of infants is set out through regulation and law under the Guardianship of Infants Act 1964. A significant modernisation of the law in this area was brought about in 2015, with the enactment of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015. This legislation extensively amended the Guardianship of Infants Act 1964. The amended Act aligns with Article 42A of the Constitution, which requires that provision be made by law that the best interests of the child shall be the paramount consideration in the resolution of all proceedings concerning the guardianship or custody of, or access to, any child.
Section 31 of the Act sets out a wide range of factors that the court is required to take into account when determining the best interests of the child in such proceedings. In cases where difficulties arise from the absence of agreement between parents or guardians, for example in relation to health or education issues, or passport issues as the Deputy mentioned, section 11 of the Act allows for an application to be made to the District Court for a direction on a question affecting the welfare of the child.
More generally, my Department is leading a programme of family justice reform as set out in the first family justice strategy, which focuses on the needs and rights of children and providing the assistance parents need when making decisions that affect all of the family. The actions outlined in the strategy stress the centrality of children to many family justice matters and the need to ensure that their best interests are considered, in conjunction with their constitutional rights. This will be achieved through the implementation of over 50 actions across nine goals, with timelines for delivery up to the end of 2025. A number of these actions have already been completed and I would be pleased to provide further updates to the Deputy on this work as he requires.
I am very conscious of what the Deputy has said about the difficulty that can arise in respect of where one parent is not involved and there is an obligation for permission from both parents. That can create significant difficulties, particularly when no involvement from the other parent is ongoing in the child’s life. This is a sensitive issue. I would be interested to hear what the Deputy has to say in respect of proposals. I will consider whatever he does have to say.
The Minister hit the nail on the head with what he said at the end. Much of the answer relates to the situation set down in law where there is an agreement between parents but that is not the circumstance I am envisaging. For example, if a child needs a medical or educational assessment or the renewal of a passport and one parent is simply not present, it is not a matter that the parents do not agree - one could almost assume that if a parent were present, there would not be a difficulty - it is the notion that a parent, in order to get their child’s educational or psychological needs assessed, requires the consent of a parent who may not even be in the jurisdiction. This is hugely problematic. The answer cannot be that they have to go to the District Court every time to make an application to overrule that. I am not even sure if the legislative framework covers that in circumstances where the specific scenario is where there is disagreement between the parents and, presumably, where both parents would be represented in an inter partes application. It feels like there is a bureaucratic block here and a scenario which has not been envisaged in the context of the legislation. A review might bring about a more functional system in relation to parents in these particular circumstances.
The Deputy identified a good point in the context of where a child just needs a medical or educational assessment. If it is the case that the consent or agreement of both guardians is required, that can be very problematic. I accept the validity of what the Deputy says. There is the option available under section 11 of the guardianship Act that allows for an application to be made to the District Court, but parents should not be put that expense, inconvenience and the level of time commitment involved in order to get a direction in respect of the welfare of their child.
I will have a look at the legislation. I would appreciate if the Deputy would do so too. If there is a minor amendment that is required, I would be happy to sit down and discuss it with him if he would like to introduce it by way of a Private Members Bill. I would happy to talk to him in respect of that. Outside of changing the law, we are limited in what we can do in trying to get agreement or trying to ensure that the consent of both parents is not required. I suspect that does require legislative change. I would be interested in talking to the Deputy in respect of what that change could or should be.
I appreciate that commitment. I will engage with the Minister. I do not know if this is something that is applied in a way that is intransigent by different State agencies. I do not know the answer to that. I also do not know if it is the case, for example, that a parent now in the situation where a child needs a particular assessment goes to the District Court can make that application in circumstances where he or she could not serve notice on the other parent of the application being made because there is no contact whatever. We know there are families where one parent is estranged. This specifically, and much more commonly, affects women who are left looking after a child in the absence of the father rather than the other way around.
I appreciate the Minister’s commitment. I will engage with him and hopefully we can come to a solution to make this work better.
If it is the case that the matter has to go to court and the consent cannot be obtained, for example, where the other parent has no involvement in the child’s life, I would have thought that a District Court judge would take that into account and recognise that there has to be some practical solution to the application that is being brought if the parent who is minding the child needs to get the authorisation of the other parent or guardian in order for some assessment to be carried out if that person is not available or is simply not interested in the child. I would think that most District Court judges would adopt a very sensible approach to that and recognise that the application being brought should be consented to. However, we should try to make life easier for people in difficult situations like that. The method for us to make life easier for them is to try to remove any legislative obstacle that exists in respect of it. I will look at the legislation and discuss it with the Deputy.
130. Deputy Erin McGreehan asked the Minister for Justice the number of gardaí currently assigned to stations in Louth; the number of these deployed for tackling drug crime; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12522/25]
This question relates to the number of gardaí deployed at stations in County Louth and, in particular, the number deployed to tackle drug crime.
I thank the Deputy for raising the question on the numbers of gardaí in County Louth. I have been advised by An Garda Síochána that the numbers deployed tackling drug crime specifically cannot be shared for operational reasons. I commend An Garda Síochána on its excellent work yesterday or the day before when it apprehended a very large seizure of cocaine that was illegally and unlawfully brought into the country. That is a continuation of very considerable success that the Gardaí have had in recent years.
There are currently 14,167 Garda members across the country, an increase of around 10% since 2015. Of this number, there are 364 Garda members assigned to stations in County Louth. As I said, for operational reasons the Garda does not want me to identify how many are working in the area of drug crime. However, I commend An Garda Síochána on its recent success in Louth, where it seized drugs with an estimated value of €230,000 in Dunleer, and an estimated value of €1.9 million in an operation across Louth and Dublin. There is considerable work being done by An Garda Síochána in respect of apprehending criminals who are bringing drugs into the country.
The work is ongoing in respect of what is happening in the Deputy's constituency of Louth. It is important that the Garda be resourced in respect of its constant campaign against drug trafficking. It has had considerable successes recently. Some of the larger cases going on in the Central Criminal Court relate to large amounts of drugs that have been seized by An Garda Síochána and that were being unlawfully imported into the country.
