Written Answers Nos. 160-179
160. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice the progress to date in the determination of an application for citizenship in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39263/24]
View answerThe naturalisation application from the person referred to by the Deputy continues to be processed by my Department.
I understand the extended wait times can be frustrating for applicants. I want to assure anyone who has an application for naturalisation submitted that the Citizenship Division of my Department is doing everything possible to progress applications as quickly as possible.
It is important to note that no two applications are the same and some take longer than others to process.
All applicants must undergo Garda vetting. Unfortunately, it is the case that some international checks can take a considerable amount of time and are largely out of the control of my Department. The previous backlogs in application processing in Citizenship had arisen largely due to the legacy of restrictions imposed on staff attendance in the office during the pandemic.
Since then, Citizenship Division have taken a significant number of steps to speed up the process for applicants. These included introducing an online digital application, online payments, and the introduction of eVetting. I am pleased to inform the Deputy that these changes are dramatically reducing processing times.
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: IMoireachtasmail@justice.ie, 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..
161. Deputy Patricia Ryan asked the Minister for Justice the funding model for domestic violence refuges in Ireland. [39273/24]
View answerOne of the overarching goals of Zero Tolerance, the Third National Strategy on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, which I published in June 2022, is to ensure that everyone who needs a refuge space will get one and under the strategy we have committed to doubling the number of refuge units across the country.
This represents the fastest ever expansion of refuge accommodation in this country.
To accelerate the delivery of additional refuge accommodation year on year, I established Cuan - the Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence Agency – which is working closely with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and the Housing Agency to put in place the necessary structures and supports for organisations to take forward plans.
The Agency also has a dedicated team in place to support the development of domestic violence refuges.As accommodation for victims of DSGBV falls under the remit of Cuan, I am referring this question to them for direct answer.
162. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Justice further to Parliamentary Question No. 1055 of 9 September 2024, if a breakdown of the 300 Garda transfer applications approved, by Garda division, can be shared; the status of the remaining 250 applications made for transfer; the length of time it takes to process a transfer request; the number of Gardaí approved on the transfer list who have been transferred; the average length of time a Garda on the list waits for transfer; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39291/24]
View answerI have requested the information sought by the Deputy from the Garda authorities. Regrettably, this was not available in time and I will write to the Deputy once the information is to hand.
163. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice when a naturalisation certificate will issue in the case of a person (details supplied), who paid the required fee in May 2024; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39302/24]
View answerI would like to congratulate the person referred to by the Deputy on being granted Irish Citizenship.
I appreciate receiving the Certificate of naturalisation is important to all applicants and I recognise that there has been a delay issuing Certificates for minors.
I am pleased to say that the issues with printing have been resolved and applicants can expect to receive their Certificate in the coming weeks.
It should also be noted that all certificates are issued by registered post and will require a signature on delivery for the security of the document.
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: IMoireachtasmail@justice.ie, 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.
164. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Justice the number prosecutions that have been carried out under section 26 of the International Protection Act 2015 in the past five years. [39408/24]
View answerManagement of the courts, operational matters and logistical functions are the responsibility of the judiciary and Courts Service, which are independent in exercising their functions under the Courts Service Act 1998 and given the separation of powers in the Constitution. The Courts Service has a dedicated email address for the provision of information to members of the Houses of the Oireachtas at: oireachtasenquiries@courts.ie.Figures of this nature are recorded by the Courts Service. Therefore, I have referred your question to the Courts Service for their direct reply.
166. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Justice the number of counselling hours provided by prison in 2017 and 2024, respectively, in tabular form.; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39413/24]
View answerI have requested the information sought by the Deputy from the Irish Prison Service. Unfortunately, it has not been possible to provide the information requested in the time allowed. I will write to the Deputy directly when the information is to hand.
167. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Justice the number of deaths in Irish prisons in each of the past five years; the number of these found to be drug overdose at inquest or review; and the number where drugs was referenced in either report [39414/24]
View answerI can advise the Deputy that all deaths in custody are notified to An Garda Síochána, who investigate where circumstances warrant, in addition to the inquest held in the Coroner's Court. The cause of death is determined by a jury on the basis of the information presented to the Coroner's Court.
All deaths in custody, and deaths that occur within one month of temporary release, are also subject to an independent investigation by the Inspector of Prisons.
The Irish Prison Service is not advised by the Coroner whether the death was attributable to a drug overdose and the table below classifies the causes of death as determined by the coroner, where applicable. It also gives the number of people who died while in Prison in each of the last five years and to date in 2024.
Table: Deaths in Custody 2019 to 30 September 2024 inclusive classified by cause of death as determined by Coroner:
|
Year |
Suicide |
Deceased took his/her own life |
Misadventure |
Natural Causes |
Open |
Narrative Verdict |
Unlawful Killing |
Inquest Pending |
Annual Total |
|
2024 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
15 |
15 |
|
2023 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
12 |
12 |
|
2022 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
14 |
20 |
|
2021 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
8 |
|
2020 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
8 |
|
2019 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
5 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
14 |
|
Total |
4 |
0 |
4 |
13 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
56 |
77 |
168. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Justice the number of wings for people in recovery in each prison; and whether these wings are maintained given prison overcrowding, in tabular form. [39415/24]
View answerI can advise the Deputy that the Irish Prison Service offers multidimensional drug rehabilitation programmes for people in custody with access to a range of medical and rehabilitative services, such as methadone substation treatment, psycho social services, and ‘work and training’ options which assist in addressing their substance misuse.
The Irish Prison Service Drugs Strategy 2023-2026 aims at reducing the harm caused by substance abuse within the prison environment by building upon the commitments of the Irish Prison Service, Keeping Drugs Out of Prison Strategy, the new drugs strategy provides practical measures to be implemented by the Irish Prison Service in addressing the issue of illicit drug use over the next three years.
Any person entering prison giving a history of opiate use and testing positive for opioids is offered a medically assisted symptomatic detoxification, if clinically indicated. Patients can discuss other treatment options with healthcare staff. These may include stabilisation on methadone maintenance for those who wish to continue on maintenance while in prison and when they return to the community on release. People who, on committal to prison, are engaged in a methadone substitution programme in the community will, in the main, have their methadone substitution treatment continued while in prison. Methadone substitution treatment is available in 9 of the 13 prisons which accommodate over 80% of the prison population.
There are currently no formal recovery wings across the Irish Prison Service Estate, however there are a number of units which serve to support people identified as having a major mental illness, including D2 in Cloverhill Prison and two units within the Medical Unit in Mountjoy Prison. In recent years significant progress has been made to improve both accommodation and regime on these wings in both prisons.
I can further advise the Deputy that in relation to addiction recovery, there are four units within the Medical Unit in Mountjoy Prison, which are designated drug free landings and support the Treatment and Rehabilitation Programme (TARP) currently run by Merchants Quay Ireland.
Treatment and Rehabilitation is a bespoke programme which was developed in 2022 by Merchants Quay Ireland in partnership with the Irish Prison Service to support those who had become drug free in prison to continue their recovery and to support them to continue to lead a drug free life both whilst in prison, and post release. The programme runs over a seven week cycle, six weeks of group work and one week for orientation in the unit. Seven courses are held each calendar year accommodating up to 63 prisoners in total. TARP is currently being reviewed to support ongoing developments in relation to addiction support.
169. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Justice the status of a family reunification application in respect of a family (details supplied). [39421/24]
View answerThe Family Reunification application for the person referred to by the Deputy has been received by my Department and continues to be processed at this time. All applications are processed in chronological order.
The speed in which a decision can be made largely depends on the quality of the application received. My Department will continue to engage with the applicant for any further information that may be required to assist with the processing of the application.
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: IMoireachtasmail@justice.ie, 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.
170. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 83 of 25 September 2024, if he will clarify that his Department has evidence of insurance cover for each and every approved PV installer, and subcontractor; if he will further clarify that evidence of this insurance is checked and validated on a regular basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39243/24]
View answerIt is a requirement that all Solar PV installers registered with my Department must provide evidence of appropriate insurance cover as a condition of being included on the registered list.
All solar PV installers must have appropriate insurance cover at the time of the contract and retain insurance cover which is a condition of continuing to be included on the registered list.
Correspondence was issued earlier this year to all solar PV installers on the registered list seeking confirmation of their current active insurance cover. I can confirm that the registered list will continue to be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure all have the appropriate insurance cover in place.
In certain circumstances, a registered installer may subcontract the installation works. My Department does not seek sight of insurance cover of the sub-contractor involved as the contract for the installation of the solar PV system remains with the installer from the registered list. Therefore if problems arise, the applicant may seek recourse with the main contractor, who has the appropriate insurance cover in place.
171. Deputy Martin Browne asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has taken any steps to consider appropriate setback rules for anaerobic digestors similar to those in place for windfarms. [39211/24]
View answerFirstly, as the deputy is aware, The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, has responsibility for the overall development of national planning policy and legislation which includes the appropriate setback rules for Anaerobic Digestion facilities.
AD and other integrated assets are required to undergo a planning process to ensure proper consideration of a range of factors, including location, visual impact, land-zoning plans, and ecology. Guidelines and requirements for these are set out through several acts, policy documents, spatial strategies, and development plans. Projects above a certain threshold are also required to complete an Environmental Impact Assessment.
As committed to in the published National Biomethane Strategy, the Biomethane Implementation group is to develop guidelines to support local authorities when assessing AD and biorefinery planning applications.
172. Deputy Martin Browne asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the measures his Department has taken to ensure that anaerobic digestion projects will provide a social benefit to the communities in which they are located. [39212/24]
View answerThrough engagement with communities, planners and appropriate mitigations, AD developments can bring significant benefits to the communities and the local environment. I recognise the importance of AD projects providing benefits to the communities that the plants are rolled out in.
Due to the nature of feedstocks required, it is envisaged that most developments will occur in rural Ireland. The development of an indigenous biomethane industry at scale provides a significant opportunity for farmers in terms of diversification of income / offers a viable land use alternative. The provision of agricultural feedstocks will offer rural communities’ opportunities to green and diversify their income streams.
A Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland (SEAI) report identified that in terms of employment, between construction and operation of AD plants, circa. 2,700 jobs could be created in the rural economy in Ireland.
Community engagement from developers will be key locally to gain support from the communities that will be hosting the AD plants.
The National Biomethane Strategy commits to the development of an online information hub for developers which will include guidance on best practice engagement with local communities where the project is being constructed.
Through collaboration across industry and with Government and communities, we hope to build a resilient and sustainable industry that is central to Ireland’s circular bioeconomy.
173. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a person in County Cork (details supplied) will receive their ACRES payment. [39221/24]
View answerThe person named submitted an application under the ACRES Co-operation stream and was approved into Tranche 1 of the scheme.
I have made further enquiries into the matter. It is my understanding that a member of the ACRES team has been in direct contact with the persons named, explaining the position in relation to processing the transfer request to facilitate the change of herd number to the Registered Farm Partnership on the ACRES system in order to progress this application.
I can assure you my department is working actively to facilitate payments as quickly as possible.
174. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of approved PV installers who have been removed from his Department’s list of approved installers for reasons to do with non-availability of insurance cover; if he is satisfied that all approved installers on the list have at all times had the necessary insurance cover; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39235/24]
View answerAll solar PV installers must have appropriate insurance cover. I can confirm that there has been no instances where installers have been removed from the solar PV registered list due to insufficient or non-availability of insurance cover.
I understand correspondence was issued earlier this year to all solar PV installers on the registered list seeking confirmation of their current active insurance cover. I can also confirm that the registered list will continue to be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure all have the appropriate insurance cover in place.
175. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of applications for grant aid for PV panel installation under TAMS; the number of instances in these applications where the approved installer subcontracted the works involved; the steps taken by his Department in each of these cases to ensure that the sub-contractor had the appropriate insurance cover in place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39237/24]
View answerTo date my Department has provided grant-aid to 295 applicants for the installation of solar panels under the Targeted Agriculture Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) II. A further 77 applicants have received grant-aid for the installation of solar panels under the Solar Capital Investment Scheme of TAMS 3, while a total of 1,454 applications have been approved to proceed with works under this scheme.
In certain circumstances, a registered installer may subcontract the installation works. However, my Department does not keep a record of the exact number as the contract for the installation of the solar PV system remains with the installer from the registered list. Therefore if problems arise, the applicant may seek recourse through the main contractor, who has the appropriate insurance cover in place.
All solar PV installers must have appropriate insurance cover at the time of the contract and retain such cover in order to continue to be included on the registered list.
Correspondence was issued earlier this year to all solar PV installers on the registered list seeking confirmation of their current active insurance cover. I can confirm that the registered list will continue to be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure that all have the appropriate insurance cover in place.
176. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he can confirm that in the case of a PV installation grant application (details supplied), the necessary and appropriate insurance was in place by the sub-contractor involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39252/24]
View answerAll solar installers registered with my Department must provide evidence of appropriate insurance cover as a condition of being included on the registered list.
The solar PV installer referred to had appropriate insurance cover at the time of the contract and retains such cover, which is a condition of continuing to be included on the registered list.
In certain circumstances, a registered installer may subcontract the installation works. My Department does not seek sight of insurance cover of the sub-contractor involved as the contract for the installation of the solar PV system remains with the installer from the registered list. Therefore if problems arise, the applicant may seek recourse with the main contractor, who has the appropriate insurance cover in place.
I can confirm that correspondence issued earlier this year to all solar PV installers on the registered list seeking confirmation of their current active insurance cover. I can also confirm that the registered list will continue to be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure that all have the appropriate insurance cover in place.
177. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will extend the slurry spreading deadline; whether his Department is reviewing this matter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39262/24]
View answerMy colleague, Minister O'Brien is responsible for the European Union Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters Regulations 2022 (SI 113 of 2022, as amended).
Under these Regulations the closed period for applying slurry to land now commences on the 1st of October annually.
Following consultation with me, in 2022, Minister O'Brien published the scientific criteria that must be considered before granting any extension to the slurry spreading period. Due to the increased risk of the loss of nutrients to water through late application of slurry those criteria were designed to only apply in justified exceptional circumstances.
Last year the scientific criteria were met and that justified an extension to the period when slurry spreading was permitted. However, the same scientific criteria were not met this year.
There has been a significant increased focus on water quality across the agrifood sector in recent years. Stakeholders across the industry are now very much focused on the objective of improving water quality.
Earlier this year I published 'Water and Agriculture - a collaborative approach' which highlights the issues we face and the good work currently being done to improve water quality from an agricultural perspective.
Irish water quality needs to improve in order to meet the Water Framework Directive target and maintain Ireland's Nitrates Derogation.
Farmers have been and are making great strides in implementing actions at farm level to improve water quality and the current government is providing strong incentives to support this work which is underpinned by science.
The relevant scientific criteria did not support an extension to the slurry spreading deadline this year and the closed period began on 1st October.
178. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when an ACRES 2023 balance payment for a person (details supplied) will be received; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39296/24]
View answerThe person named submitted an application under the ACRES Co-operation stream and was approved into Tranche 1 of the Scheme. An interim payment of €5,000 issued to the person named on 28th February 2024.
The 2023 ACRES payment claim associated with this herd has not yet cleared all the necessary validations. The interim payment made early in the year will be netted against the finalised ACRES payment. Department officials are actively examining the case to facilitate finalisation of the claim as quickly as possible.
179. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the engagement he has had with the beekeeping community regarding proposals to make all anti-parasite medicines only available on veterinary prescription. [39297/24]
View answerIn preparing the Regulations, there has been extensive stakeholder engagement over the last 4 years and all stakeholder views have been considered to find the appropriate balance of routes of supply, medicine availability and cost while meeting our obligations in EU and national legislation.
My Department is aware of potential issues for the bee-keeping community in relation to the supply of anti-parasitics when they become prescription only medicines in June 2025. There will be continued engagement with the beekeeping community to ensure continued availability of these important veterinary medicines.
