Tuesday, 13 Dec 2022

Written Answers Nos. 512-526

Prison Service

Questions (512, 513)

Brian Stanley

Question:

512. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Justice if he will provide details of the criteria for the awarding of medals of merit to the staff of the Irish Prison Service. [62047/22]

Brian Stanley

Question:

513. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Justice if similar criteria apply to awarding medals of merit to prison staff as in the case of An Garda Síochána; and if not, if she will explain the rationale. [62048/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I propose to take Questions Nos. 512 and 513 together.

While there are similarities between the arrangements in place to recognise merit and bravery in An Garda Síochána and the Irish Prison service respectively, both schemes operate separately and according to the policies and procedures established by the organisation in question.

In terms of the specific arrangements which apply in the Irish Prison Service, I can advise the Deputy that following significant consultation with stakeholders and other agencies, the Irish Prison Service Staff Recognition Policy came into effect on 1 June 2013. The introduction of the scheme was publicised through official Irish Prison Service communication channels and the official newsletter of the Prison Officers Association.

The original Policy recognised staff for their long service and included the Merit Award Scheme which recognised acts of bravery, outstanding heroism or merit which have been performed by staff of the Irish Prison Service. Under the Merit Awards there are three levels of award, depending on the degree of bravery, heroism or merit, beyond the normal expectation of the member of staff and taking account their experience and training.

The Merit Awards Scheme operates as a graded system to recognise the range of brave and heroic actions and awards include the Stack Medal, the Distinguished Service Medal and the Governor's Commendation.

The Stack Medal was introduced under the policy in June 2013 and is the highest honour that can be bestowed upon a member of staff of the Irish Prison Service. The Stack Medal is presented to a staff member by the serving Minister for Justice in recognition of an act of exceptional personal bravery by the nominee.

The Distinguished Service Medal which was also introduced in June 2013 and is an award which can be bestowed upon a member of staff of the Irish Prison Service by the Director General. There is also the Governor's Commendation which may be issued where a particular deed of staff member merits official recognition but would not meet the threshold to be awarded the Stack or Distinguished Services Medal.

By the end of 2015, two Stack Medals, 60 Distinguished Services Medals and 90 Governor’s Commendations had been approved. This included nominations for cases that predated the introduction of the policy, as the 2013 Policy did not specify any specific deadline for the submission of applications.

In 2017, the Irish Prison Service updated the Staff Recognition Policy, which introduced a number of changes including the introduction of a third element namely Excellence and Innovation Awards.

In addition, the revised Policy also included the provision that applications for Merit (Bravery) Awards must be received within 12 months of the incident or event occurring. This was to ensure that emphasis and focus was put on contemporary incidents and to ensure that such applications could be adequately scrutinised, including the review of available supporting material.

Question No. 513 answered with Question No. 512.

Prison Service

Questions (514)

Brian Stanley

Question:

514. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Justice if she will outline the procedures for the dismissal of a staff member of the prison service, in particular, if she will state the person or body that should issue the notice; and the records and copies of documents of dismissals that are kept by her Department. [62050/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I am advised by the Director General of the Irish Prison Service that all dismissals in the Irish Prison Service are subject to the Civil Service Regulation Acts 1956 to 2005 and the Civil Service Disciplinary Code 2016. The final decision in relation to the dismissal of an employee of the Irish Prison Service rests with the Appropriate Authority as provided for in the Civil Service Regulations. The Appropriate Authority may be the Minister or the Secretary General of the Department of Justice depending on the grade of the staff member concerned.

The Human Resources Directorate of the Irish Prison Service manages the dismissal procedures on behalf of the Appropriate Authority and while the Appropriate Authority authorises the dismissal it is the Irish Prison Service who formally notifies the individual concerned. The records and associated documentation relating to the dismissal process are created, maintained and retained by the Human Resources Directorate in the IPS in line with the requirements of the process and in compliance with GDPR and other applicable data regulation.

Citizenship Applications

Questions (515)

Pa Daly

Question:

515. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Justice the current waiting times for citizenship applications by EEA and non-EEA applicants, in tabular form. [62138/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I am deeply conscious of how important the granting of naturalisation is to those who apply for it and my Department continued to accept and process citizenship applications throughout the pandemic and during all levels of public health restrictions.

All naturalisation applications, whether they are made by EEA or Non-EEA applicants are processed in chronological order on date received and in accordance with the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956 as amended. There are no provisions to apply different criteria depending on the nationality of the applicant. All applicants are required to meet minimum periods of reckonable residence and standard checks are carried out as part of the overall process to maintain its integrity.

The Citizenship Division receives approximately 1,000 applications per month and utilises the resources available to maximise processing and reduce waiting times. 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. The current median processing time for naturalisation applications is 19 months.

This year the division has issued naturalisation certificates in respect of 13,583 applicants including 2,549 decisions on minor applications. This is an 18% increase on the 11,512 issued in 2021.

There are ongoing developments and improvements being made to the Citizenship application process. Significant changes have been introduced for customers regarding the number of proofs required to establish their identity and residency as part of the application process. A new scorecard was introduced to help applicants to complete their applications with greater certainty than before. Since the go-live of the scorecards, a preliminary review of applications received indicates that the quality of the applications has markedly improved.

This is a welcome development and builds on other innovative measures introduced in the citizenship application process, including the deployment of “Tara” the e-chat bot, e-payments, e-tax clearance and Gardaí e-vetting, and the removal of the requirement to provide the original passport when making an application, all of which have positively enhanced the applicant's experience.

Citizenship Applications

Questions (516)

Sorca Clarke

Question:

516. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Justice when a decision can be expected on an application by a person (details supplied) for citizenship. [62156/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

The naturalisation application from the persons referred to by the Deputy continue to be processed by my Department, with a view to establishing whether the applicants meet the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation. The applications will be submitted to me for decision in due course.

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. However, 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.

Applications are processed in chronological order by date received. Due to the high volume of applications currently on hand, regrettably, the median time for processing applications is 19 months.

However, my Department is taking a number of steps to speed up the processing of applications and a number of digitisation measures have also been introduced to increase efficiency in the process, including eTax clearance, eVetting and online payments. The end result of the digitisation process will be to free up more staff to focus on processing applications in a timely and efficient manner, to improve service to our customers and reduce waiting times.

In 2021, my Department issued 11,512 citizenship decisions, which is the highest number of decisions made since 2015, and reflects positively the significant changes undertaken to date.

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 at: [e-mail], 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.

Departmental Meetings

Questions (517)

Paul Donnelly

Question:

517. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Justice if she spoke with the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (details supplied) during 2022. [62185/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I wish to advise the Deputy that neither I nor Minister McEntee spoke with the United States Drugs Enforcement Administrator in 2022.

An Garda Síochána

Questions (518)

Paul Donnelly

Question:

518. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Justice the number of violent disorder offences reported to gardaí within the K district to date in 2022. [62186/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I have contacted An Garda Síochána for the information requested by the Deputy, regretfully this information was not available in time. I will write to the Deputy once the information is to hand.

The following deferred reply was received under Standing Order 51

I refer to Parliamentary Question No. 518 of 13 December 2022 where you sought:

“The number of violent disorder offences reported to Gardaí within the K district to date in 2022.”

As you will be aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the administration and management of An Garda Síochána, including operational policing matters. As Minister, I have no direct role.

As you will recall, Minister Humphreys sought the information you requested from the Garda authorities and undertook to contact you again once the information was to hand.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that at 18 December 2022 there were 13 incidents of type “Affray/Riot/Violent Disorder” reported by Blanchardstown District in 2022.

I trust this information will be of assistance.

An Garda Síochána

Questions (519)

Paul Donnelly

Question:

519. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Justice the number of competitions that were held for sworn Garda personnel to join divisional roads policing units in 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form. [62187/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I have requested the information sought by the Deputy from the Garda authorities. I will contact the Deputy directly once the information is to hand.

Departmental Budgets

Questions (520)

Paul Donnelly

Question:

520. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Justice the budget allocation for the Criminal Assets Bureau in 2021, 2022 and 2023, in tabular form. [62188/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

The Government is committed to ensuring that adequate resources are provided to support the work of the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) in targeting the proceeds of crime.

I can inform the Deputy that the following table sets out the budget allocation for the Criminal Assets Bureau for the years 2021, 2022 and 2023.

2021	2022	2023
€ 9.961 million	€ 10.858 million	€ 10.903 million

Gambling Sector

Questions (521)

Mark Ward

Question:

521. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Justice the criteria for eligibility for the social inclusion fund established in the Gambling Regulation Bill 2022; if a person (details supplied) would qualify; if he will outline the application process; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [62246/22]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality

The Gambling Regulation Bill was approved by Cabinet on 15th of November, published Friday, 2nd December and completed second stage in the Dáil on Tuesday, 6th December. The Bill sets out the framework and legislative basis for the establishment of a new, independent statutory body – the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland – and for a robust regulatory and licensing regime for the gambling sector.

The Bill provides for the establishment and management of a Social Impact Fund by the Authority, as recommended by the report of the Inter-Departmental Working Group on Future Licensing and Regulation of Gambling (March 2019). The purpose of the Fund is to finance research and related initiatives to reduce and eliminate compulsive and excessive gambling, to support awareness–raising and educational measures and to support problem gambling treatment activities.

The Social Impact Fund will be funded by mandatory contributions, calculated annually on each licensee’s turnover. Importantly, contributions will not be levied on charitable/philanthropic licensees.

The management and control of the Fund, including any payments from the Fund, will be a matter for the Authority in due course when it is established. The Authority will be responsible for inviting applications for proposals compatible with the purposes of the Fund and will publish assessment criteria for proposals on its website.

Departmental Schemes

Questions (522)

Mark Ward

Question:

522. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Justice the number of applications for the community safety innovation fund that came from Dublin Mid-West; the number that were successful; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [62271/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I can confirm for the Deputy that 22 projects across the country were successful in their applications for funding and will receive grants ranging from €5,000 to €150,000, totalling €2 million, under the 2022 Community Safety Innovation Fund.

The fund opened for applications in April 2022 and a total of 124 were received by the deadline of 8 June. I can further confirm that six applications were received for projects within or whose scope covered part of the Dublin mid-west area. None of these applications were successful.

Based on the high quality of proposals received, I believe the successful projects have the potential to have a real impact on their respective communities. I also want to encourage those who applied this year but did not receive funding to apply next year.

I can also inform the Deputy that we are increasing the size of the fund by 50 per cent to €3 million in 2023. A call for applications to the 2023 fund is expected to issue in Q1 of next year.

Question No. 523 answered with Question No. 495.

Pension Provisions

Questions (524)

David Stanton

Question:

524. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Justice when an increase in pension payments will be paid to a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [62328/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

The Legal Aid Board is the statutory, independent body responsible for the provision of civil legal aid and advice to persons of modest means in the State, in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Legal Aid Act 1995 and the Civil Legal Aid Regulations 1996, as amended.

The Board delivers these services through directly employed solicitors in its network of law centres around the country and private solicitors from its private practitioner panels. As Minister for Justice, I have no role in respect of the matter raised by the Deputy. The Legal Aid Board can be contacted directly at [e-mail]

Prison Service

Questions (525, 526)

Violet-Anne Wynne

Question:

525. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Justice further to Parliamentary Question No. 488 of 15 November 2022, the reason for the disproportionately high level of full-day closures at Limerick as opposed to other sites; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [62352/22]

Violet-Anne Wynne

Question:

526. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Justice further to Parliamentary Question No. 488 of 15 November 2022, the reason for all full-day closures and partial closures at Limerick in the past three years in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [62353/22]

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I propose to take Questions Nos. 525 and 526 together.

I have sought the information requested by the Deputy from the Irish Prison Service, however, the information was not available in time. I will write to the Deputy once the information is to hand.

Question No. 526 answered with Question No. 525.