Seanad Éireann
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Vol. 247 Thursday, No. 8 6 October 2016 DÍOSPÓIREACHTAÍ PARLAIMINTE PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES SEANAD ÉIREANN TUAIRISC OIFIGIÚIL—Neamhcheartaithe (OFFICIAL REPORT—Unrevised) Insert Date Here 06/10/2016A00100Business of Seanad 464 06/10/2016A00300Commencement Matters 465 06/10/2016A00450Garda Vetting of Personnel 465 06/10/2016B00450Road Projects 467 06/10/2016C00450Neuro-Rehabilitation Services ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������470 06/10/2016G00100Order of Business 473 06/10/2016O01200Sitting Arrangements: Motion ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������490 06/10/2016O01500EU Regulation on Matrimonial Matters, Matters of Parental Responsibility and International Child Abduction: Motion 490 06/10/2016O01800Appointment of Members of Legal Services Regulatory Authority: Motion 491 06/10/2016W00050Action Plan for Education: Statements 491 SEANAD ÉIREANN Déardaoin, 6 Deireadh Fómhair 2016 Thursday, 6 October 2016 Chuaigh an Leas-Chathaoirleach i gceannas ar 1030 am Machnamh agus Paidir. Reflection and Prayer. 06/10/2016A00100Business of Seanad 06/10/2016A00200An Leas-Chathaoirleach: I have received notice from Senator Aidan Davitt that, on the Commencement of the House today, he proposes to raise the following matter: The need for the Tánaiste and Minister of Justice and Equality to outline how she plans to address the unworkable nature of the new Garda vetting system which has hindered school recruitment processes and voluntary organisations across the State I have also received notice from Senator Kieran O’Donnell of the following matter: The need for the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to provide an update on plans in respect of the M20 motorway project from Cork to Limerick I have also received notice from Senator Victor Boyhan of the following matter: The need for the Minister for Health to update the House on the progress, if any, that has been made in the transfer of lands for the redevelopment of the National Rehabilitation Hos- pital, Rochestown Avenue, Dún Laoghaire, County Dublin and when works are expected to commence on the site I have also received notice from Senator Colette Kelleher of the following matter: The need for the Minister for Health to invest in inpatient and community neuro-rehabil- itation services to address the deficits on the patient pathway from hospital to home. I have also received notice from Senator Gerard P Craughwell of the following matter: The need for the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to outline his plans for the regulation of scrambler bikes which are being driven by under-age and uninsured drivers on roads and footpaths and in green areas, posing a real risk to lives and causing serious anti- social behaviour I have also received notice from Senator Brian Ó Domhnaill of the following matter: The need for the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to give approval to increase the herring quota under the Celtic Sea herring management plan for the Dunmore Box to compensate for the loss of herring quota in the fishery in 2015. 464 6 October 2016 I have also received notice from Senator Tim Lombard of the following matter: The need for the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, in the light of the cur- rent crisis in the grain industry, to engage with the European Commission to secure an aid package for the grain sector I regard the matters raised by the Senators as suitable for discussion I have selected the matters raised by Senators Aidan Davitt, Kieran O’Donnell, Victor Boyhan and Colette Kelle- her and they will be taken now Senators Gerard P Craughwell, Brian Ó Domhnaill and Tim Lombard may give notice on another day of the matters they wish to raise Senator Colette Kelleher has withdrawn the Commencement matter which I had selected for discussion 06/10/2016A00300Commencement Matters 06/10/2016A00450Garda Vetting of Personnel 06/10/2016A00400An Leas-Chathaoirleach: I welcome the Minister of State 06/10/2016A00500Senator Aidan Davitt: The statement is self-explanatory Since the roll-out of the new Garda vetting forms, there has been a disconnect between the legislation and the reality on the ground A serious problem has arisen Mr Michael Ryan, the principal of a school in Water- ford, has raised a valid query He wants to take on some temporary staff He would have the same issue if he wanted to take on a new teacher to work in the school He and the school board of management can be held personally liable under the new legislation if they do not get the Garda vetting certificates in order. For someone looking to work on a temporary basis, it is tak- ing five or six weeks to get a Garda vetting certificate for that school. If a teacher was working in a school and had a Garda vetting certificate, it would not apply to Mr. Ryan’s school. Under the new legislation, a principal such as Mr. Ryan has to apply to the Garda to obtain a certificate pertaining to his school There seems to be a real disconnect The same applies to social clubs and other bodies For argument’s sake, if the Minister of State wanted to be a coach with a GAA club, the club would need to apply and o obtain a cer- tificate from the Garda. If he then wanted to coach the soccer team or work with the scouts, these bodies would need to apply individually, which is duplication of paperwork There has to be a simpler system I know that for new teachers starting now there is an electronic certificate. If the Garda ap- proves a person for one body, the certificate should apply to all. We need a more streamlined system to make the system work There is considerably more responsibility under the new legislation, with the possibility of imprisonment, fines and everything else. People are taking it very seriously While I welcome the legislation in principle - it is good legislation - it might have been imposed slightly too quickly without having done some of the ground work behind it. Perhaps the certificate that applies to new teachers should be given to existing teachers in order that they could move more freely between schools It is a serious problem and we should address it 465 Seanad Éireann 06/10/2016A00600Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality (Deputy David Stanton): I am representing the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality today I thank the Senator for raising this matter as it provides me with an opportunity to inform the House that there is no particular or undue delay in the Garda employment vetting process There has been a very significant improvement in the timeframe for processing vetting applications in recent months. The Garda authorities which operate the National Vetting Bureau inform the Tánaiste that in the order of 80% of vetting applications are processed by the vetting bureau within five work- ing days The current processing times represent a dramatic improvement in turnaround times which have fallen from an average of 14 weeks in mid-2013 This improvement has come about as a result of unprecedented investment by the Government and the Garda authorities in providing this service, including an increase of more than 80% in staffing levels in the past couple of years and the roll-out earlier this year of an e-vetting system In April this year the Tánaiste commenced the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Acts 2012 to 2016, in tandem with which An Garda Síochána launched the e-vetting system E-vetting facilitates the on-line processing of applications and this has significantly stream- lined the process and contributed to a sustained reduction in processing times of applications A key feature of the e-vetting system is that the individual applicant can track the progress of his or her vetting application on-line and can, therefore, see when his or her application has been processed and returned to the relevant registered organisation The Tánaiste has been informed that 85% of organisations registered for vetting are operat- ing the e-vetting system The Garda authorities are working to encourage all other organisa- tions to do so The Senator may be able to help in that regard by letting people know about it For vetting applications that continue to be submitted in the old paper format, the average turnaround time is around four weeks from the date of receipt of the application by the vetting bureau and this represents a minimum timeframe, given the administrative input required The Senator is correct about the paperwork involved The e-vetting system is a lot faster In some individual cases, it can take longer to process an application where, for example, additional inquiries are necessary or where errors have been made in the application It is im- portant to note that delays can also occur in other aspects of the application process which are outside the control of the Garda authorities, for example, in the submission or return of applica- tions by the registered organisations In summary, the overwhelming majority of vetting