There is a lot of dodgy money around-----

Deputy Hearne should be ashamed of himself. He really should be.

No.

I have a reply on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Jim O'Callaghan, to the topical issue as originally put forward. I was here earlier on for the Deputy's intervention. I am very glad to have an opportunity to make this point. From where I was sitting, I felt and still feel that some of the Deputy's comments were totally unacceptable. An Garda Síochána is an organisation which this country can be justly proud of. It investigates all crimes equally and fairly. There was a major attempt made by the Deputy and his colle…

We are doing stuff. I will take a few moments to outline what we are doing. Among the number of key actions we have taken is to increase the maximum sentence for conspiracy to murder from ten years to life and enact new laws that criminalise the grooming of children into a life of crime, which is legislation that is at the forefront of anything any other European country is doing. We are drafting new laws that will provide for the use of facial recognition technology and investigation of certain drug offences. We a…

I fully accept what the Taoiseach is saying with regard to the lots of progress that has been made. However, I dealt with the issue of a day centre for Cork when I was a Minister of State and it is only in the past four weeks that tenders have been invited for its creation. This centre will be extremely important for people who are homeless and have accommodation at night but have nowhere to go during the day. It is important that this project is progressed. There is a need for an overall plan in relation to the ci…

I move: That Dáil Éireann approves the exercise by the State of the option or discretion under Protocol No. 21 on the position of the United Kingdom and Ireland in respect of the area of freedom, security and justice annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, to take part in the adoption and application of the following proposed measure: Proposal for a Council Decision authorising Member States to sign, in the interest of the European Union, the Third Additio…

I again thank the House for facilitating the motion and thank all the TDs who contributed. As I mentioned in my opening remarks, this proposal will enhance the ability of member and partner states to tackle crime more effectively in a rapidly evolving political, social and technological landscape. That was very clearly also mentioned by the last speaker. The third additional protocol, though itself introduced as several important updates aimed at modernising and streamlining mutual legal assistance procedures among…

I thank the Deputy for his question and his remarks. Earlier this week I was delighted to attend the citizenship ceremonies held in Killarney along with the Ministers of State, Deputies Collins and Buttimer. It is a wonderful ceremony to go to. We had 5,200 new Irish citizens there. Last year the number of naturalisation applications received by the Department was 27,032. Separately, the number of people who received a letter of approval was 29,868 and 187 were refused. Despite the substantial increase in applicati…

The Department is always planning ahead and looking at that. We have put, as I said, additional resources in place. I do not believe additional backlogs will come in. Every effort is made. As I know people will listen to this, I reiterate that no two applications are the same. Some individual applications that come in take considerably longer, particularly in relation to checks that have to be done by An Garda Síochána, which are outside our direct control in terms of reply lines. That leads to a frustration where …

As I indicated in my initial response, we have seen very significant reductions in processing times. The objective is to try to provide that service within as tight a 12-month timeframe as we can. We will continue to do that. As I mentioned, there will always be individual cases where that is not the case. In the context of a significant increase in the number making applications in recent years, we have seen the processing time decrease in the handling of that increased volume. I would like to put on record that t…

I appreciate the comments in relation to the language and tone that must be used at all times in having conversations around this issue. It is very important, and important in this House. During the period from 2022 to 2024, over 45,000 additional international protection applicants arrived in Ireland. Prior to this, a typical three-year period would have seen between 8,000 and 9,000 arrivals. IPAS was accommodating approximately 7,000 people in total at the end of 2021. By the end of 2024, that figure had risen to…

I assure the Deputy, as I did in my initial reply, that this is what we are doing. We fully recognise that we went through a period where we had an effective emergency. We had a massive surge in numbers and we had to respond to those on a humanitarian basis and to provide emergency accommodation as necessary. The operation that the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, and I have been working on, literally day and night since we came into office, is to ensure we put in place an IPAS system that is fit for purpose, delivers…

There is very little of that I would disagree with. To be absolutely clear, the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, and I have announced a contribution model which we will implement. We believe absolutely in a system based on fairness, which means that people who are working and bring provided with accommodation through the IPAS system should make a contribution to the cost of that provision. On the actual cost of providing the IPAS system, as I mentioned we have implemented a new rate card as part of contract renegotiat…

It is almost Christmas.

It is not being opposed.

I thank everyone who has contributed to the debate. This is an area, obviously, where a debate can be fought and major issues can develop very quickly into very fraught conversations. I welcome, therefore, the tone and conversation we have had today. Before I go any further, I acknowledge what happens when debates are not like this but, rather, become very heated and spill into the real world. That has a real impact. We saw that during the summer with attacks on part of the Indian community in particular. We saw it…

The Minister thanks Senator Kennelly for raising this important issue and for offering her the opportunity to respond. The Children First Act 2015 prescribes a range of professionals as mandated reporters who must report to Tusla child protection concerns at or above a defined threshold. This provision is supported by a range of other measures for the protection of children. Under the Children First framework, the Department of education is responsible for developing and implementing child protection procedures for…

I appreciate the Senator's comments and I will convey them to the Minister on his behalf. The Minister has asked me to make some closing remarks on this. It is important to state that robust legislative policy and practice measures are in place to promote safeguarding of children in Ireland. Government Departments promote compliance with Children First within their funded bodies. Under this legislation, all bodies providing services to children are legally required to ensure that, as far as practicable, each child …

I thank the Senator for the opportunity to allow me, on behalf of the Minister, to clarify this situation concerning the Reach fund in 2025. The Reach fund is a dedicated fund to support the most disadvantaged learners to access education and training provided by ETBs and community education providers. Investment in community education increased by 52% from 2018 to 2024, from nearly €11 million in 2018 to nearly €17 million in 2024. In recent years this investment has been bolstered by the introduction of the Reach…