I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and allowing me to address the matter. The Minister for Education regrets being unable to attend the debate because she is fulfilling a long-standing commitment to speak at the annual conference of the Joint Managerial Body Secretariat of Secondary Schools. Access to relationships and sexuality education is an important right for students. This is reflected in the programme for Government, which states the Government will develop inclusive and age-appropriate curriculums fo…

In respect of the Department of Justice, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, is leading the work on a new, whole-of-government approach to develop a strategy to combat domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. As the Deputy will be aware, that plan has set an overall goal of a zero-tolerance approach. The Minister is working to finalise the strategy for submission to the Government in light of the submissions received in this final consultative phase, which ended last month. She intends to bring both the finalised stra…

I am pleased to have the opportunity to address the Seanad on behalf of the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee. I would like to begin by thanking Senators Doherty, Chambers and Pauline O’Reilly for bringing forward this very important Private Members' Bill on character references in sexual offences trials. The Criminal Justice (Amendment) Bill 2022 proposes to change the current practice whereby "unvouched" character evidence can be presented as a mitigating factor in sentencing, and replace it with a system wher…

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 Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on automated data exchange for police cooperation (…

I thank Deputies for their contributions and support. We are facing an increasingly dynamic criminal threat. Criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated. As Deputy Howlin pointed out, crime is becoming more and more transnational. We have to think transnationally and dynamically to address those issues. The updates are welcome. As Deputy Berry pointed out, the principle is established but we need to keep updating these powers to ensure An Garda Síochána and other police forces have the necessary power. We hav…

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 Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a collaboration platform to support th…

I thank the Deputies for their contributions. I will address a number of matters. With regard to Deputy Martin Kenny's points on the UK, obviously, it is now a third country. Provision is made within the protocols and the regulations for third-country co-operation, however, so I expect that will continue, albeit in a slightly different format in the sense that it will be a third country but nonetheless, it will be able to continue. I note the Deputy's comments with regard to transposition. One of the reasons we hav…

I thank Deputy Stanley for raising this important matter regarding the need for domestic violence accommodation in Laois and the midlands. I reiterate that it is my goal and that of the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, that everyone who needs a refuge space will get one. I am familiar with the Wexford women's refuge and the Wexford rape crisis centre, and the great work done by both those bodies, so I understand the real importance of this. The Minister is deeply committed to working with partners in the secto…

I again thank Deputy Stanley for raising this very important matter around the need for domestic violence refuge accommodation. The Minister fully acknowledges the need to dramatically increase the provision of domestic violence accommodation and refuge spaces right across the country. While I agree that prevention is key, I also acknowledge the Deputy's point that priority must be given to the here and now, to people who need those safe spaces. That is why the Minister has identified ten priority areas to provide …

I thank the Deputy for raising this important question. Care and rehabilitation are core aims of the Irish Prison Service. Sentences are managed to encourage and support prisoners in their efforts to reintegrate into society and live law-abiding lives on release. My Department and the Departments of Education and Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science engage with the service to ensure a range of education opportunities are available to those in custody and those who have served their sentenc…

It is critical that the Department of Justice works with the Departments of Education and Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. It is doing so. I agree with the Deputy regarding the concerns. While in opposition, I raised the fact that if all the inmates who cannot read or write were taken out, the number of prisons would be substantially reduced.

That statistic proves that. We now have a hardcore statistic in that regard. It is a matter of which I am very aware, as is the Minister, Deputy McEntee. That is why there is this level of collaboration with the Departments of Education and Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to try to address this issue. Obviously, education is primarily a matter for those Departments but we in the Department of Justice have an important role in that regard. As Minister of State with responsibility for y…

I am in full agreement with the Deputy on this. That prevention piece is critical. One of the things I have been doing since lockdown ended is visiting youth diversion projects, initially mostly in Dublin, but subsequently widening that circle across the country. With the funding for youth diversion projects we received in the budget in October, we will now be able to fund the new role of family support workers, as well as additional youth workers. They are not only working with the families to try to strengthen th…

When mass displacements of people have occurred as a result of violence and conflict in countries such as Syria and Afghanistan, safety and shelter for people forced to flee have largely been provided to them by their closest neighbours. Most people want to return to their homes as soon as it is safe to do so. That is human nature. Staying nearby helps them to feel closer to that goal. It is the same for the people fleeing Ukraine who are clearly strongly patriotic people. This time, however, we in Europe are their…

As I set out, an alternative system has been put in place by the European Union under the temporary protection directive. This applies to everybody leaving Ukraine. They can now come to the European Union for this protection. People can come to Ireland for protection when they need it. They can apply under the international protection system in this country. Those supports are being put in place. An end-to-end review of the relevant international protection processes by a multidisciplinary team from the Department …

The Government and the Department have introduced a number of very important reforms in the international protection system. We were the only country to introduce a bespoke protection system to be able to bring Afghans to Ireland. We now have a regularisation scheme which is the most generous regularisation scheme of any country in Europe. The Government and the Department have not been found wanting in putting the supports in place and in implementing the report of Catherine Day as quickly as possible. With regard…

I thank the Deputy, who consistently raises issues with regard to the protection and safety of his constituency of Cork North-Central. The budget provided by the Government to the Garda Commissioner has increased to unprecedented levels with more than €2 billion allocated this year, including funding for the recruitment of up to 800 additional Garda trainees and up to 400 Garda staff. This is a significant investment and demonstrates the Government's commitment to increasing the Garda workforce to enable the organi…

I can tell the Deputy that there was a significant drop in the number of reported incidents of car theft nationally from 2015 to 2016 with the number of reported offences dropping by 29%. Numbers then remained quite stable until the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, the number of reported cases dropped by a further 21% in 2020 compared with the 2019 figure. I am informed by the Garda authorities that the number of car thefts in many areas to date in 2022 has reflected the level seen in 2019. Howe…

I thank the Deputy very much. I will certainly get figures on the number of car thefts in north Cork city for the Deputy. With regard to tackling the issue of the theft of catalytic convertors, we are very conscious of the impact such thefts from car owners have. It seems to be a particularly prevalent issue for the owners of specific types of hybrid vehicles. Perhaps such cars are a little bit vulnerable to having their catalytic convertors stolen. Such thefts are, of course, related to the current high market pri…

I thank the Deputy for raising this important question about the Wicklow courthouse. The National Development Plan 2021-2030, which was approved and published by the Government in October 2021, commits to the provision of further new or refurbished courthouses in cities and county towns where facilities remain substandard, including in Wicklow town. While the management of the courts, including the provision of accommodation for court sittings, is the responsibility of the Courts Service, which is independent in th…