Written Answers Nos. 1-10
1. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the weekly salary of young privates in the Defence Forces recently passed out; his plans to restore pre-crash pay levels to Defence Forces personnel; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11197/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra2. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence his views on reports that young privates in the Defence Forces who recently passed out are earning less than the minimum wage; his plans to address this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11198/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 2 together.
Defence Forces pay is increasing in accordance with public sector pay agreements. The focus of these increases is weighted in favour of those on lower pay. Members of the Permanent Defence Force have received the pay increases due under the Lansdowne Road Agreement.
In addition, following negotiations with PDFORRA on behalf of their members, improved payscales for general service recruits and privates who joined the Permanent Defence Force post 1 January 2013, were backdated to 1 July 2016 and paid in August 2017.
The Public Service Stability Agreement 2018-2020 provides for further increases in pay ranging from 6.2% to 7.4% over the lifetime of the Agreement with the benefits, once again, weighted towards those on lower pay. By the end of the Agreement the payscales for all public servants earning up to €70,000 will be restored to the levels that existed prior to the Financial Emergency legislation.
The first incremental increase under this agreement of 1% in annualised salaries due from 1 January 2018 has been paid to enlisted personnel.
Following these revisions in pay, the starting pay for a newly qualified three star private, and their Naval Service equivalent, (inclusive of military service allowance) is €27,257, gross annual earnings, with scope for further income from duty allowances.
The non-standard time and attendance patterns of military personnel and the rates of remuneration associated with a wide spectrum of duties undertaken by such military personnel can vary across the different branches of the Defence Forces and, consequently, does not facilitate the general application of a threshold rate of pay.
3. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the reason the Civil Defence was stood down when the red weather level report came into effect for County Longford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11502/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Defence is charged with the management and development of Civil Defence at national level. The Department provides policy direction, centralised training through the Civil Defence College, administrative support and guidance and centralised procurement of major items of uniform and equipment in support of local authority Civil Defence efforts. Civil Defence is funded by way of a grant from the Defence Vote. Funding for Civil Defence operations at local level is shared on a 70/30 basis between the Department of Defence and local authorities by way of an annual grant to each authority.
Civil Defence services are delivered through the Civil Defence Officer (CDO) of the relevant Local Authority for that area. The CDO is a full time employee of the local authority and is responsible for the day-to-day management of Civil Defence matters under the overall direction of the relevant Chief Executive of the local authority.
It is a matter for each local authority, in this case Longford County Council, to decide when to deploy their Civil Defence Unit. The Department of Defence does not have a role in these decisions. I understand that a number of other local authorities stood down their Civil Defence Units for short periods during the recent severe weather.
4. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the role played by the Naval Service in the arrest of scafisti in the Mediterranean, that is persons who are forced to drive boats and then arrested as human smugglers and in the event of there being an involvement to justify same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11685/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn July 2017, Government and Dáil approval was secured for the deployment of a contingent of the Permanent Defence Force to serve as part of the EU Common Security and Defence Policy naval mission in the Mediterranean, Operation Sophia. Irish Naval vessel L.É. Niamh, subsequently deployed to the Mediterranean from October to December 2017.
In the course of its deployment in Operation Sophia last year, the crew of L.É. Niamh were engaged in both security tasks and in responding to Safety of Life at sea events (search and rescue) in the area of operation. In addition the core task of the mission including, gathering information on oil smuggling, patrols focusing on countering illegal arms trafficking, surveillance operations with the purpose of intercepting smugglers and people traffickers and monitoring the effectiveness of the Libyan Navy & Coastguard activity from a stand-off distance the L.É. Niamh also undertook search and rescue operations.
All activities undertaken by the Naval Service as part of Operation Sophia in the Mediterranean adhere to and are conducted in accordance with international law, including human rights, humanitarian and refugee law and the principle of non-refoulement. The status of individuals rescued at sea is a matter for the authorities at the point of disembarkation in accordance with relevant international law and conventions on the trafficking in Human Beings.
Where people have been rescued by Operation Sophia, they are brought to a safe port or transferred to another vessel to be taken to a safe port. In that regard, the ports of embarkation for migrants rescued by Operation Sophia have been in Sicily.
Operation Sophia has so far contributed to the apprehension of 130 suspected smugglers and traffickers, removed approximately 520 boats from criminal organisations availability, contributed to almost 290 Safety of Life at Sea events and rescued over 42,400 migrants.
At the Government Meeting of 27 February last , I secured approval for the deployment in 2018 of a contingent of the Permanent Defence Force to serve once again as part of Operation Sophia. Arrangements are currently being made for two Irish naval vessels to deploy consecutively under rotation for a period of approximately 32 weeks in total.
5. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of staff assigned in his Department to the press office, public relations or communications roles in each year since 2015; the positions by staffing grade and designated role; when each new position came into existence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11700/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere are currently 2.25 whole time equivalents in the press and information office in my Department comprising a shared Clerical Officer, an Executive Officer and an Administrative Officer, who is the designated Press Officer, reporting to an Assistant Principal Officer. These staff are responsible for all press, media, communications and information functions within the Department. In the period concerned, the number of whole time equivalent staffing of the unit has varied year on year, reflecting both the duties in the wider work area and work patterns within the area. In 2015, 1.73 whole time equivalents staffed the unit; in 2016, 2 whole time equivalents; and in 2017, 2.25 whole time equivalents.
6. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence if a panel has been established in his Department for communications officers; if a Civil Service position of head of communications or similar role or description has been appointed in his Department; if so, when the appointment occurred; the grade at which it occurred; the reason for same; the policy basis for same; the person who approved the appointment; his plans to make such an appointment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11716/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere is no role of Head of Communications within my Department and no panel for communications officers. There are no current plans to make such appointments within my Department. There is a post of Technical Communications Officer with the Civil Defence Branch to support the operations of radio and the other communications infrastructure of Civil Defence.
7. Deputy Martin Ferris asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to the fact that citizens of Venezuela living here are having difficulty in renewing their passports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10843/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe issuing of passports is solely a matter for the issuing country and it would not be appropriate for me to comment.
I am, however, glad of this opportunity to reiterate my deep concern at the situation in Venezuela, including the growing humanitarian crisis. The matter was discussed at the meeting of EU Foreign Ministers which I attended in Brussels last week.
It was agreed at that meeting that the EU would continue to closely monitor the situation in Venezuela and would keep channels of communication open, both with the government and the opposition.
Ireland, alongside our EU partners, is committed to finding ways to achieve a peaceful negotiated solution to the crisis currently affecting the country through credible and meaningful dialogue, in order to bring about political stability and to address the pressing needs of the Venezuelan people.
8. Deputy Kevin O'Keeffe asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to a ruling of the Supreme Court on the refusal to grant a passport when adjudicating a similar case (details supplied) which was refused by his Department. [10845/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAll passport applications are subject to the provisions of the Passports Act 2008 (“the Act”). The Act provides, among other things, that a person must be an Irish citizen before a passport can be issued to him/her. In order to meet this legal requirement, each person must demonstrate an entitlement to Irish citizenship in his/her passport application. The applicant referred to was born in January 2017. Any possible claim to citizenship for the applicant is governed by the terms of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act, 1956 as amended (“the 1956 Act”). Section 6A of the 1956 Act provides that a person born in the State on or after 1 January 2005, where neither parent is an Irish or British citizen or otherwise entitled to reside in the State or Northern Ireland without restriction at the time of that person’s birth, may claim citizenship by birth in the State (and thereby establish eligibility for an Irish passport) only where a parent has been lawfully resident in the State for three years of the four years preceding his/her birth. In such cases, proofs of lawful residence in the State are required to determine if a parent has the required three year residence. For non-EU parents, permission to remain in the State recorded on passports, and/or registration cards, as issued by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB), are acceptable proofs of a parent’s lawful residence in the context of a passport application.
In this case, the applicant’s parent has not provided proof of lawful residence in the State for the required time-period prior to the child’s birth. Without such proof of lawful residence, an entitlement to citizenship and therefore eligibility for an Irish passport, has not been established.
Citizenship – including naturalisation – comes under the remit of the Department of Justice and Equality (Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service) and further information is available on the website www.inis.gov.ie
9. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if sexual harassment complaints have been received in relation to Irish Aid or other agencies tasked with delivering ODA and funded by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10852/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra10. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the procedures his Department has in place to protect against the staff of aid agencies being involved in sexual abuse and exploitation; if he is reviewing their procedures in view of reports of same in the media with a view to improving them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10853/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 9 and 10 together.
Sexual exploitation and abuse in any context is an affront to our values and the humanitarian imperative to ensure the safety, security and dignity of people affected by disaster or living in extreme poverty.
Effective delivery of any aspect of Ireland’s Overseas Development Assistance programme requires not only the achievement of results but also sustained investment in robust systems of governance and oversight, financial management, human resource management, and safeguarding procedures across those organisations which help deliver the programme.
Grant compliance, a condition for receipt of funding from the Department of Foreign Affairs, is regularly assessed through appraisal of aid partners’ organisational systems as well as monitoring of results achieved.
The Department expects partner agencies to manage all cases of staff misconduct effectively, in compliance with the terms and conditions of their employment contracts and local law.
Organisations in receipt of funding from the Department are expected to have in place: robust human resource management policies which outline organisational standards of behaviour and related safeguarding practices; a clear framework for reporting issues internally as they arise, keeping in mind the protection and well-being of those making a complaint; and, documented procedures for investigation and disciplinary action, and / or referral to statutory authorities when necessary. Sharing information on complaints of sexual harassment must be handled with the utmost sensitivity and diligence by all organisations.
Reporting obligations for organisations are detailed within funding contracts. While the Department is not a statutory body with specific responsibility for handling cases of sexual exploitation or abuse, it does expect to be informed of issues that indicate a breakdown of any organisational systems necessary for effective programme delivery. Compliance issues linked to these systems are addressed on a case-by-case basis as they arise, in line with contractual obligations of funding.
As part of the process of ongoing grant monitoring and oversight, the Department will continue to request updates from partners on compliance with their policies and procedures.
The Department is convening a meeting with NGOs receiving Irish Aid funding, to share good practice in the area of safeguarding and to continue to strengthen systems to prevent and respond effectively to cases of sexual exploitation and abuse.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s processes for dealing with bullying, sexual harassment and related complaints are outlined in the 2015 “Dignity at Work” policy – an anti-bullying, harassment and sexual harassment policy for the Civil Service. The policy aims to promote respect, dignity, safety and equality in the workplace. Prior to 2015, such complaints were dealt with under the “Positive Working Environment” policy.
The Department examines all formal complaints made to its Human Resources Unit no matter what category they fall under. The Human Resources Unit of the Department has not received any complaints of sexual harassment against staff of its Development Cooperation Division (Irish Aid) under either the Dignity at Work” or “Positive Working Environment” policies.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will continue to invest in its own systems and to promote best practice principles in aid delivery, to prevent and respond to issues of sexual exploitation and abuse; principles to which we expect every organisation in receipt of funding to adhere.
