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Written Answers Nos. 111-135Departmental Expenditure 111. Deputy Barry Cowen Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): This approach to the cross-Government presence brought an increased level of coordination, cohesion and alignment between Government Departments, agencies and State-supported bodies at the NPC. It also focused on maximising the value and quality of supports and services provided to NPC visitors. For the first time, over 150 exhibitors were located in the one area, “The Government of Ireland Village”, and Government stands across Departments, agencies and bodies were grouped in marquees and tents on the basis of the supports, services and policy areas they are responsible for. While there was no dedicated Departmental stand during the period in question, a number of agencies under the remit of my Department had their own stands or were present at other stands, reflecting the broad range of work carried out in the Justice sector. I have referred your request to the relevant agencies for their direct response to provide further detail. All of the Department’s online and offline advertising was developed internally and, as such, no additional external costs were incurred. The NPC provides an important opportunity to provide advice and guidance to citizens about many issues under the remit of my Department including safety. This year, for example, at the NPC I formally launched the National Rural Safety Forum - a collaborative partnership between An Garda Síochána, my own Department and a wide range of partners including the IFA and Muintir an Tíre. Its objectives include information sharing and community engagement on crime prevention. I attend the National Ploughing Championships every year including since I became Minister for Justice and Equality. The then Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality, Frances Fitzgerald T.D. attended in 2016. Generally, the Minister is accompanied by their Private Secretary at the event. A member of staff from the Department's Press and Communications Office would also be present as part of their normal duties in connection with publicising the work of the Department and the agencies under its remit. All staff in question are entitled to travel and subsistence payments in connection with their attendance in line with civil service guidelines. Garda Deployment 112. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): Residency Permits 113. Deputy Willie Penrose Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): Permission to remain in the State for parents of Irish Citizen Children may be granted where the applicant can show that they are playing an active role in the life of the Irish Citizen Child. The child must also be residing continuously in Ireland. If the persons concerned are granted permission as the parents of an Irish Citizen Child, the child will need to attend the Immigration Service when their parent is registering their permission to reside in the State. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited. Domestic Violence Policy 114. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): As Deputies will be aware, the Government has already considerably strengthened the law and structures targeting domestic violence, as part of the Second National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence 2016-2021. Central to this is the landmark Domestic Violence Act 2018, which came into force on 1 January of this year. Other developments in this area include the enactment of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017, which introduced a statutory definition of consent, and the Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Act 2017, which provides a wide range of measures and services to protect and inform victims during the progress of their case through the Criminal Justice system. Implementation of the Second National Strategy is monitored on an ongoing basis and actions may be added to it by agreement of the monitoring committee which is made up of representatives from state agencies and the community and voluntary sector. A mid term review of the implementation of the strategy is underway and will be completed in full consultation with all stakeholders, including Women’s Aid. An Garda Síochána is also continuously improving its specialist services. Responding to the needs of victims has seen the rollout of Divisional Protective Services Units (DPSUs) with specially trained officers responsible for investigations, including engagement with victims. These Units will support the delivery of a consistent and professional approach to the investigation of sexual and domestic crime. 13 DPSUs have now been rolled out and I am informed by the Garda Commissioner that they will be in place nationwide by the end of Quarter 1, 2020. The introduction of these measures supported Ireland’s ratification this year of the Istanbul Convention (the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence), which I announced on International Women's Day last March. In May the Government supported my proposal to commission a study into familicide and domestic homicide reviews. This independent, specialist research will look at two particular issues: - the provision of supports to families who are victims of familicide; and - international best practice in the conduct of Domestic Homicide Reviews. Norah Gibbons is leading the study with Grainne McMorrow SC and Forensic Criminologist Dr Jane Monckton Smith. This team brings vast experience and a wide specialist expertise and included a period for consultation with a wide range of stakeholders including State agencies, family members of victims and NGOs. While familicide is relatively rare in Ireland, these events have a devastating impact on those left behind, both family members and the wider community. The study will examine how such supports can be provided in a more systemic and integrated way. The study will attempt to ensure that victims of familicide are supported in as compassionate and timely a way as possible; as well as how local communities who experience the horror of familicide cases in their local areas can be best supported. In parallel to that study, in the context of the categorisation and recording of homicides An Garda Síochána is currently conducting a review of the investigation of certain homicides which includes a number of domestic homicides. Separately to this, An Garda Siochána is developing policies and procedures to inform the overall policing approach to domestic homicides. This includes a Domestic Homicide Review Team in the Garda National Protective Services Bureau examining a small number of domestic homicides of relevance for review. The purpose of such reviews is to examine what lessons, if any, should be learned and what potential changes to relevant policing policy and procedures should be introduced. It is intended that such a course of action will result in an improved response by An Garda Síochána in the handling of domestic violence and/or abuse into the future and ultimately reduce the number of domestic related homicides in our society. Family Reunification Applications 115. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): In the event that further calls for proposals are made under the IHAP, or any other future admissions schemes, the proposer in this case may have the opportunity to apply. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 my department is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited. Naturalisation Eligibility 116. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan 117. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): I can inform the Deputy that it is open to the person concerned to lodge an application for a certificate of Naturalisation if they have 5 years (60 Months) reckonable residency on the date of the application. For the purpose of naturalisation, reckonable residency (i.e. stamp 1, stamp 3 or stamp 4), is calculated by counting months of permission to remain in the state. Reckonable residency is reflected in the corresponding stamp 1, stamp 3 or stamp 4 endorsements in a person's passport. To meet the statutory residency criteria as laid out in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956 (as amended), an individual needs to have 60 months (5 years) reckonable residency with the year immediately before the date of application being of continuous residency. The minor the Deputy has referred to would not be entitled to a passport as he or she was born in the state after 1 January 2005 and were not entitled to Irish Citizenship at the time of birth. However, if at the time of the birth one of his or her parents had been a resident in the state for a period of 4 years immediately preceding the birth, the child would have been entitled to Irish citizenship. An application may be submitted for a minor if the minor's parents have already been naturalised or if the minor is of Irish descent or has Irish associations or, at the time of their birth, was not entitled to Irish Citizenship but has since accumulate 5 years' reckonable residency in the state. Minors cannot apply for naturalisation by themselves. The application must be made by their parent, legal guardian or person acting on the child's behalf "in loco parentis". Further information on applying for naturalisation can be found on my Departments website www.inis.gov.ie. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited. Residency Permits 118. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): Applications are dealt with in strict chronological order, and a decision will issue to the person concerned in due course. Although it is not possible at the present time to provide a definitive date by which a determination will be made in this case, there will be no avoidable delay in completing same. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 Question process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from the Department is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited. Naturalisation Eligibility 119. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): As the Deputy will appreciate, the granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour 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. It is recognised that all applicants for citizenship would wish to have a decision on their application without delay. The nature of the naturalisation process is such that, for a broad range of reasons, some cases will take longer than others to process. In some instances, completing the necessary checks can take a considerable period of time. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited. Naturalisation Eligibility 120. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): As the Deputy will appreciate, the granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour 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. It is recognised that all applicants for citizenship would wish to have a decision on their application without delay. The nature of the naturalisation process is such that, for a broad range of reasons, some cases will take longer than others to process. In some instances, completing the necessary checks can take a considerable period of time. Queries in relation to the status of any immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by email 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 Question process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in the cases where the response is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited. Residency Permits 121. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): I am further informed that the persons concerned have not yet made an application for renewal of their current permission. Only when the persons referred to have made their application through the normal channels can a decision be made on their case. Persons making an application for renewal of a permission to remain in the State are required to provide satisfactory evidence of their identity and nationality. This is usually in the form of a currently valid passport and may include other original supporting documents, such as a previously held or out of date passport, birth certificate and marriage certificate. In rare circumstances where an applicant cannot produce their current passport, or a previous passport, birth certificate or other supporting documents the applicant will be required to provide a full explanation. Such explanation should, where possible, be supported by satisfactory evidence that they have attempted to obtain such documentation and correspondence from the relevant authorities or embassy responsible for the issuing of passports and birth certificates in their country, clearly stating the reasons the documentation cannot be provided. My Department will consider the explanation given and, if satisfied it is for reasons genuinely beyond the applicant's control, may suggest alternative means to the person to assist in establishing their identity and nationality. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 Question process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from the Department, is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited. Naturalisation Eligibility 122. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): As the Deputy will appreciate, the granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour 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. It is recognised that all applicants for citizenship would wish to have a decision on their application without delay. The nature of the naturalisation process is such that, for a broad range of reasons, some cases will take longer than others to process. In some instances, completing the necessary checks can take a considerable period of time. Queries in relation to the status of any immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by email 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 Question process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in the cases where the response is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited. Visa Applications 123. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the Immigration Service of my Department 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 is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited. Refugee Status Applications 124. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): Leave to Remain 125. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): As previously advised, representations were received from the person concerned, pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(11) of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended), requesting that the Deportation Order be revoked including information regarding the person's marriage. Following detailed consideration of the information submitted in support of the request, the Deportation Order was affirmed and notified to the person concerned by letter dated 27 November 2018. There are no outstanding correspondence or applications on file for this applicant. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited. Naturalisation Applications 126. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): Prison Service Staff 127. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan):
Immigration Status 128. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): Representations were received on behalf of the person concerned pursuant to Section 3 (11) of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended), to revoke the Deportation Order. Following the consideration of those representations, a decision was taken in July 2018 that the Deportation Order should be affirmed and this decision was communicated to the person concerned by registered post-dated 8 May 2019. The Deputy might wish to note that the effect of a Deportation Order is that the person named on the Order is legally obliged to leave the State and to remain outside of the State. The enforcement of the Deportation Order in this case is now an operational matter for the Garda National Immigration Bureau. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department 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 is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited. Assisted Decision Making 129. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan 130. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Minister for Justice and Equality (Deputy Charles Flanagan): My Department is looking at the Supreme Court decision and will keep the matter under review. As the Deputy will be aware, wardship proceedings fall within the scope of the Civil Legal Aid Act 1995. Legal aid is available to persons who satisfy the financial eligibility criteria laid down in that Act and in the Civil Legal Aid Regulations 1996 to 2017. Principally, the person must have disposable income of less than €18,000 per annum and disposable capital assets of less than €100,000 (excluding the home in which they live). The person’s case must also satisfy the merits criteria laid down under that Act. These criteria include if the applicant is reasonably likely to be successful in the proceedings and if having regard to all the circumstances of the case, including the cost to the Board as against the benefit to the applicant, it is reasonable to grant legal aid. The Legal Aid Board is bound to apply the financial eligibility and merits criteria to all cases. While I as Minister for Justice, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, can disapply the financial eligibility criteria by means of an amendment to the Civil Legal Aid Regulations 1996, I cannot disapply the merits criteria in such a manner under the Act. The Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act 2015 provides particular provisions in relation to legal aid for what are termed “relevant persons” (RPs) under the Act. The provisions would effectively remove the means criteria for RPs and apply what is known as the “reduced merits” criteria (the same criteria applicable in cases involving the welfare of a child, i.e. that the prospects of success and reasonableness tests are removed). It also provides for a mechanism for recovering costs in cases where legal aid is granted to an RP who would have been financially ineligible for legal services. These provisions are contingent on the commencement of Part 5 of the 2015 Act and are not worded in such a way that they could be applied to the provisions of the Lunacy Regulation (Ireland) Act1871. When the court considers it appropriate it can appoint a Guardian ad Litem to represent the voice of the Ward in Court. If funds are not available to cover the Ward's costs associated with this appointment, they are borne by the Courts Service, Health Service Executive or the Child and Family Agency. If the Health Service Executive or the Child and Family Agency seeks the appointment of a Guardian ad Litem, they bear the costs of the appointment. In relation to fully commencing the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, as the Deputy will be aware, the Act was signed into law on 30 December 2015. The Act provides for the establishment of new administrative processes and support measures, including the setting up of the Decision Support Service (DSS) within the Mental Health Commission (a body under the Department of Health). A high-level Steering Group comprising senior officials from my Department, the Department of Health, the Mental Health Commission and the Courts Service, together with the Director of the DSS, is overseeing the establishment and commissioning of the Decision Support Service and this work is ongoing. A number of provisions of the 2015 Act were commenced in October 2016 in order to progress the setting up of the DSS. The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 (Commencement of Certain Provisions) Order 2016 (S.I. No. 515 of 2016) commenced provisions of the Act to enable the recruitment of the Director of the DSS. Ms Áine Flynn was appointed Director of the DSS on 2 October 2017. The commencement of Part 8 of the Act, which provides a legislative framework for advance healthcare directives, is a matter for the Minister for Health. The Minister for Health, under the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 (Commencement of Certain Provisions) (No. 2) Order 2016 (S.I. No. 517 of 2016), brought some provisions of Part 8 of the Act into operation on 17 October 2016. The commenced provisions provide for the establishment by the Minister for Health of a multi-disciplinary group to make recommendations to the Director of the DSS in relation to codes of practice on advance healthcare directives. In anticipation of the completion of that process, the Minister for Health commenced the remainder of section 91 on 17 December 2018 (S.I. No. 527 of 2018). The key preparations are being put in place under the oversight of the Steering Group to allow for further commencement orders for the provisions of the 2015 Act to be made when the DSS is ready to roll out the new decision-making support options. Work has been ongoing in my Department on the drafting of necessary amendments to the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, taking account of issues raised by the Mental Health Commission, the codes of practice working groups and submissions received from other bodies. The intention was to bring forward these amendments by way of the Disability (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2016. However, when Dáil Committee Stage took place on the Bill on 30 January 2019, a number of amendments were agreed which had previously been ruled out of order by the Ceann Comhairle, thus giving rise to a procedural matter. Work is ongoing to resolve this issue. Trade Missions 131. Deputy Seán Crowe Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Heather Humphreys): The 33 Enterprise Ireland supported companies that took part in the Trade Mission span a wide range of sectors including Aviation, Digital Technologies, Fintech, Education, Engineering, Telecommunications and Life Sciences. Across each of these sectors they see the Middle East as a key element of their current and future export diversification strategy and recognize the substantial opportunity that the region represents. Over 200 meetings were attended by the 33 Enterprise Ireland backed companies on the mission, covering the Aviation, Digital Technologies, Fintech, Education and Engineering sectors. Minister of State Breen did not meet with government Ministers on this occasion. Legislative Programme 132. Deputy Pat Deering Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Heather Humphreys): My Department worked with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel and received a stamped copy of the Bill on 24 July 2019. Following Government approval, the General Scheme of the Bill was submitted to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Business, Enterprise and Innovation for pre-legislative scrutiny. The Committee considered the General Scheme with Officials from my Department on 5 February 2019 and the Director of Corporate Enforcement on 19 February 2019. The Chair of the Company Law Review Group and the Law Reform Commission appeared before the Committee on 2 April 2019. In April 2019, I understand the Joint Committee decided to seek a submission from the Director of Corporate Enforcement in relation to the case of the Director of Public Prosecutions V Seán FitzPatrick. This is being sought under the Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Act 2013, in light of certain protections for the Director and his Office that the Act affords. I understand the Committee has proceeded to seek the necessary approvals and that these will necessitate motions in Dáil and Seanad Éireann. I intend to publish the Bill once the Joint Committee’s pre-legislative scrutiny process is complete. Foreign Direct Investment 133. Deputy Noel Grealish Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Heather Humphreys): Departmental Expenditure 134. Deputy Barry Cowen Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Heather Humphreys):
Research Funding 135. Deputy Robert Troy Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Heather Humphreys):
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