Written Answers Nos. 204-214
204. Deputy Gerald Nash asked the Minister for Justice and Equality when a decision will be made on an application for Garda vetting in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Louth; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32675/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am informed by the Garda authorities that a vetting application on behalf of the individual referred to by the Deputy was received by the Garda Central Vetting Unit (GCVU) on 27 June 2013. The application is being processed and will be returned to the registered organisation once completed.
205. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if an application for a re-entry visa will be expedited in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32685/13]
Amharc ar fhreagra206. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if an application for a re-entry visa will be expedited in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32686/13]
Amharc ar fhreagra207. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if an application for a re-entry visa will be expedited in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32687/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 205 to 207, inclusive, together.
The family in question would appear to have been in this country since 2007, with their children joining them on a D-Join Parent visa. The parents have renewed their residence permission in the meantime but the position of the children was not updated. Applications for re-entry visas were received but were returned on 27 June, 2013, due to a number of outstanding issues. These included not sending in their current Registration Cards and the submission of black and white photographs instead of colour, as required under visa security regulations. Given the long period of time which seems to have elapsed since the residence status was recorded sight was also requested of the passports and birth certificates for the children. It is also necessary to clarify the residence status of the mother and her relationship to all the children. Once the information is supplied and all issues can be clarified satisfactorily, consideration will be given to the re-entry visas.
208. Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if there is provision whereby An Garda Síochána may release the mobile telephone records of a deceased person to the family; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32690/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am informed by the Garda authorities that items of evidence generated during the course of an investigation conducted by An Garda Síochána are considered confidential and are not disclosed in the absence of a court order directing such disclosure.
209. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will indicate the position, notwithstanding his replies to previous parliamentary questions, in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Meath who was previously married to an Irish citizen but may now have entitlement under the Zambrano judgment and whose Irish-born child has been diagnosed with Down's syndrome; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32703/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am advised by the Repatriation Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that no application based on the principles of the Zambrano Judgment was received from the person concerned.
It will be open to the person concerned to make an application to the Repatriation Section of my Department. Details on the criteria to be met by persons lodging such applications are available from my Department's Website (www.justice.ie).
An application for a certificate of naturalisation was received from the person referred to by the Deputy in March, 2011. The application is being processed with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation, such as good character and lawful residence, and will be submitted to me for decision as expeditiously as possible. As well as being a significant event in the life of its recipient, the granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation as provided for in law is also a major step for the State which confers certain rights and entitlements not only within the State but also at European Union level and it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
210. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of projects that were approved for funding by his Department conditional on a bond being produced from a builder; the amount of the default by builders where such bonds were in place; the amount recovered through the use of bonds in such cases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32723/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI wish to inform the Deputy that it has not been possible to provide the information requested in the time available. I will write to the Deputy on this matter in the near future.
211. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Justice and Equality his views on the European Commission's progress report on Roma integration, in which Ireland rated particularly poorly in respect of our treatment of Travellers, and whether he will immediately initiate dialogue with the Traveller organisations to ensure that, as a minimum, the EU Roma integration goals with regard to access to education, employment, health care and housing are met. [32799/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI welcome the European Commission's progress report on Roma Integration which was published on 26th June 2013. This report is currently under consideration in the relevant Government Departments. My Department's role in the Strategy is one of coordination while the development of particular policy and implementation are a matter for my Government colleagues.
From Ireland's perspective, in relation to Roma specifically, it is important to note that the term “Roma”, as defined by the Council of Europe, refers to Roma, Sinti, Kale and related groups in Europe, including Travellers and Eastern groups (Dom and Lom), and covers the wide diversity of the groups concerned, including persons who identify themselves as “Gypsies”. By this definition, the vast majority of Travellers/Roma in the Irish State are indigenous Irish Travellers.
Ireland's National Traveller/Roma Strategy was developed following a communication from the EU Commission entitled “An EU Framework for National Roma Integration Strategies" (April 2011) which requested that member states would, in proportion to the size of the Roma population living in their territories and taking into account their different starting points, adopt or develop further a comprehensive approach to Roma integration.This document thus includes relevant strategies that already exist in the four crucial areas of education, employment, healthcare and housing. It also mentions initiatives in place in the same areas to assist the Roma community who are citizens of the European Economic Area and are legally resident in the country. It should be noted that Traveller representatives are active participants on National Committees dealing with policy in all four areas mentioned by the Deputy and, in this way, were involved in the development of these policies. The Irish Strategy document is envisaged to be a living document and as time goes on there is nothing to prevent the development and inclusion of new actions in any of the sectors; however the actions in the Strategy are at present generic actions in relation to the population covered rather than Roma-specific.
212. Deputy Andrew Doyle asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will set out each international organisation, agency or body of which Ireland is a member of and for which his Department, or any State body or agency under the aegis of his Department, is responsible or co-responsible; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32814/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI wish to inform the Deputy that it has not been possible to provide the information requested in the time available. I will write to the Deputy on this matter in the near future.
213. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the current position in regard to the determination of eligibility for naturalisation in the case of persons (details supplied) in County Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32841/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe first named person concerned has permission to remain in the State until 30th January, 2015. This decision was conveyed to him by letter dated 31st January, 2012.
I am advised by the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that no application for a Certificate of Naturalisation has been received from the first named person concerned. However, it will be open to him to apply for a Certificate of Naturalisation when he is in a position to meet the lawful residency criteria applicable to the lodgement of such applications. Details on the criteria to be met by persons lodging such applications are available from the INIS Website (www.inis.gov.ie).
In relation to the case of the second named person concerned, the position is that, arising from the refusal of her asylum application, and in accordance with the provisions of Section 3 of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended), she was notified, by letter dated 14th October, 2009, that the then Minister proposed to make a Deportation Order in respect of her. She was given the options, to be exercised within 15 working days, of leaving the State voluntarily, of consenting to the making of a Deportation Order or of making written representations to the then Minister setting out the reasons why a Deportation Order should not be made against her. In addition, she was notified of her entitlement to apply for subsidiary protection in accordance with the provisions of the European Communities (Eligibility for Protection) Regulations 2006.
The second named person concerned submitted an application for subsidiary protection. When consideration of this application has been completed, she will be notified in writing of the outcome.
In the event that the application for subsidiary protection is refused, the position in the State of the second named person concerned will then be decided by reference to the provisions of Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended) and Section 5 of the Refugee Act 1996 (as amended) on the prohibition of refoulement. All representations submitted will be considered before a final decision is made. Once a decision has been made, this decision, and the consequences of the decision, will be conveyed in writing to the second named person concerned.
The Deputy should note that as the second named person concerned has no current right of residency in the State, she would not be in a position to meet the lawful residency criteria applicable to persons applying to my Department for a Certificate of Naturalisation.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from the INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
214. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if and when family reunification will be offered to a person (details supplied) in County Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32842/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe individual referred to currently has a visa application under consideration. The visa application was received in the Visa Office, Abuja on 2 November 2012. A preliminary assessment of the application has been completed.
Cases of this type are dealt with in chronological order and a comprehensive examination of the application referred to will take place in due course.The actual processing time for dealing with such applications can vary depending on the particular circumstances of each individual case and the type of investigation required. Certain inconsistencies in relation to the application referred to by the Deputy has meant that more enquiries have had to be made than would normally be the case.
Queries in relation to general immigration matters may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.
