I apologise if it is not.

In the few moments available to me I want to address some of the issues that have been raised by Deputy Tully, and indeed Deputy Martin Kenny, in this slot. Both Deputies have echoed what has been a common grievance on the part of Deputies over the past few minutes, that is, in respect of the availability of refuge places which, I wish to acknowledge, is patchy in parts of the country and needs to be addressed. I want to acknowledge the work of Tusla in particular in that regard and say that there is currently a re…

I acknowledge the importance of the information and assistance campaign undertaken through the national airwaves and at local level during the pandemic. I assure Deputy Farrell that funding will continue to be made available to ensure that information campaigns are evident and are heard. The other issue raised by Deputy Farrell, echoing the earlier contributions of many Deputies, including Deputy Kenny, is the ongoing roll-out of the divisional protective service units and the training within those units. Training …

On the last point, which was raised by a number of Deputies, the offence of coercive control was introduced into our criminal law code fairly recently. While there has been just one conviction for this offence, there are a number of ongoing cases, particulars of which have been reported in the national media. During the course of the Covid emergency, the Garda informed me that its members have recorded a total of 62 incidents of coercive control. I would expect that in the normal course of the criminal law investig…

I was the Opposition spokesperson at the time.

Again, I acknowledge the work of my Department and, in particular, the work of my hard-working colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Stanton, in terms of national strategies. I do not disagree with what Deputy Howlin has said insofar as having an overarching Minister of State who would have responsibility for a number of Departments. I am thinking of housing and the matter of refuges, accommodation which I acknowledge is less than adequate, the area of social protection, and of course children and youth affairs.…

I acknowledge shortcomings in the provision of appropriate refuge accommodation. This is the subject of a review being undertaken by Tusla. I expect that will take place in the course of the summer and early autumn. I acknowledge the provision for an audit in the programme for Government which, if agreed, will be the subject matter of an early debate in the House.

I thank the Deputy for her contribution. Notwithstanding that we have been in an unprecedented pandemic for the past few months, I was pleased to liaise regularly with the Courts Service, which has a long association with my Department, and the Garda Síochána in order to ensure that the system responded where appropriate and necessary. For the benefit of the Deputy and in response to her question about civil proceedings, I should say that from 16 March to 12 June, a time during which a number of pandemic-related me…

Services will be provided, particularly those providing psychological and psychiatric assistance for people with trauma.

On Garda resources, I acknowledge the tremendous work on the part of the Garda Síochána during the course of the emergency which, as the Deputy acknowledges, has been lauded by many of the non-governmental organisations and indeed by the population generally. As Minister for Justice and Equality, I have been pleased to preside over a situation where we have managed to invest record resources in An Garda Síochána to the tune of €1.8 billion. The Deputy specifically mentions Garda vehicles and reference was made to t…

I, too, acknowledge the work of the non-governmental organisations working alongside the statutory agencies in a collaborative manner. I have to say, however, that Tusla's funding of services is currently over €25 million this year. The work that was done by the organisations referred to by the Deputy - I would add in the Rape Crisis Network of Ireland and the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre - was instrumental in the introduction of the "Still Here" campaign. I am really grateful for their efforts and collaboration in th…

With the consent of the House, I wish to indicate my intention to share time with my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Stanton. Two weeks ago, I spoke of the horror I felt, and the horror we all felt, at the tragic death of the late George Floyd. Since then, we have seen a global outpouring of solidarity for the Black Lives Matter movement and an increasing and most welcome focus on the vile problems of racism and discrimination. While it may be that this moment was prompted by recent events in one state, th…

I very much welcome the opportunity to address the House again on issues arising from the Covid-19 pandemic. Two weeks ago, only a few short days after I last spoke in the House about Covid-19, I attended a ceremony at Dublin Castle to mark the annual Garda Memorial Day, which commemorates gardaí who have lost their lives in the service of the State. It would be fitting at the outset of our debate to put on record some of my remarks from that occasion. As I said then, I take tremendous pride in the everyday work of…

I acknowledge what the Deputies have said and I thank them for their contributions. I welcome Deputy Flaherty to the House, although I note he has left the Chamber. As a fellow midlands Deputy, I wish to assure him that I will work closely with him on the matters raised. In response to the question posed by former Lord Mayor, Deputy McAuliffe, we do care about the issue of scramblers. I was pleased to receive his observations in his capacity as Lord Mayor. I will respond to the Deputy in writing tomorrow, but I inv…

There have been many in the past few weeks.

I thank the Deputy for his comments. I remind him that I do not engage in operational issues with An Garda Síochána; that is a matter for the Garda Commissioner. However, I meet the Garda Commissioner regularly. While I do not have up-to-date figures with me now on the situation in Meath, I would be happy to provide the Deputy with these figures tomorrow and he will see an increase in the number of gardaí in Meath compared with five years ago. I would be happy to convey his views directly to the Garda Commissioner.…

I thank the Deputy for raising the latter points. She will be pleased to hear that the Garda is currently investigating public order issues, which were also raised earlier by Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan. I understand that several investigations are ongoing in the context of the Covid-19 regulatory framework. It would not be appropriate for me to comment in any detail, but I assure Deputies that such investigations are under way. I agree with Deputy Carroll McNeill on anti-racism. Along with my Government colleagues, …

I thank Deputies Costello and O'Gorman for their contributions and questions. Deputy Costello indicated he might opt for a reply in writing in order to give me the opportunity to reply to Deputy O'Gorman, and I acknowledge his generosity in that regard. I agree with the points raised by Deputy Costello and would be happy to commit to a detailed reply in writing. I acknowledge what Deputy O'Gorman has said with particular reference to the expert review group on recruit education and entry pathways into An Garda Síoc…

Deputy Smith raises several very important points that in one minute 48 seconds I will not have an opportunity to reply to in the type of detail that I would wish. I would of course be happy to engage on all of the points he raised. I note his representations on behalf of his colleagues, Deputies Nash and Ó Ríordáin, in respect of organised crime in their constituencies. I did have the opportunity in the Seanad, when both of those Deputies were Members of that House, to discuss that. I have noted carefully the comm…

There were a number of questions. I thank Deputy Murphy for her contribution and her support for the work of the Garda Síochána in the current challenging circumstances. The Deputy raised the issue of Garda strength in her constituency of Kildare North. While I do not have the figures with me tonight, I would be happy to provide her with them tomorrow. They will show an increase in numbers in the north Kildare area on the numbers from five years ago. All this is part of a national recruitment campaign to increase n…