I thank Deputy McGreehan for this timely question. The reason I say it is timely is that, as she is aware, last week marked the anniversary of the murder of Veronica Guerin, which, as the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach, Deputy Maxwell, will be aware as well, had a transformative effect on the policing of Irish criminals. One of the consequences of her murder was that laws were changed whereby we could go after criminals in the civil courts. The proceeds of crime legislation and the Criminal Assets Bureau legislation were direct consequences of that. It is also instructive to note that when I am at European meetings - I know this is the same with the Ministers of State, Deputies Brophy and Collins - many of our colleagues from other European countries are very interested to hear that Ireland has a system in place to seize the assets of criminals and that it is a system based not on the criminal law but on the civil law and the civil standard of proof. Since that legislation was introduced nearly 30 years ago, it has been cutting-edge legislation that is now being followed by the rest of Europe and, I am sure, further afield. It is also a timely question from Deputy McGreehan because yesterday I received from the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel a stamped copy of the proceeds of crime Bill that I intend to introduce as soon as possible. The key reform under this legislation is the reduction of the waiting period for asset disposal from seven years to two, significantly accelerating access to seized assets. There is a whole series of other matters in the Bill which I will return to at a future date in the House. As regards Deputy McGreehan's question about the budget and resourcing of CAB, I am pleased to tell her that the CAB budget for 2025 is €12.75 million, which is an increase of 13% since 2023. Between 2018 and 2024, authorised staff resources in CAB increased steadily from 90 to 101. There are also further details of CAB plans which are available in its strategic plan, which is published on the Department website. It is important to know that we will continue to resource CAB as it is an essential tool in our fight against crime.

Sentiment score: -0.10

I have had the honour of going to Walter Scott House to meet Superintendent Gubbins, who heads up CAB. I am very impressed by the work it is doing. Although Walter Scott House is a fine new building, I am aware that the work of CAB is expanding and I am conscious that the expansion of its numbers will require further facilities. My Department has submitted a proposal as part of the review of the national development plan for funding for CAB accommodation. CAB is currently liaising with the OPW to find new accommodation. As any Minister will tell you, negotiations in respect of the national development plan are ongoing. I cannot guarantee it will happen - it is simply part of a proposal submitted - but it is something I am anxious to see occur. I want Deputy McGreehan to know that the Government will continue to support the growth and expansion of CAB to recover assets for the State. It is extremely important for criminals to know that if they stay in Ireland, their assets will be seized if it is not the case that they will be convicted and brought before the courts.

Sentiment score: 0.20

I agree with Deputy McGreehan. One of the reasons many serious criminals from Ireland have left and gone further afield is the threat they were exposed to from CAB. That is a positive development. I want the Deputy to know there is no part of the country that is free from CAB's supervision or surveillance. In all communities around the country, CAB has initiated proceedings against individuals where it is believed they have assets which are the proceeds of crime and I want that to continue. I am sure it is happening in the Border region as well as other regions. It is not simply an organisation that concentrates its attention on Dublin or Cork or the main cities. It is absolutely national in its reach and international when it comes to its co-operation with other agencies. Again, I agree with Deputy McGreehan. I will continue to resource CAB, which wants to extend its powers. This will happen through legislation I will introduce shortly into the House.

Sentiment score: 0.11

I thank Deputy Carthy for that. As he stated, the civil legal aid review group completed its reports recently. In April, I received a majority report from the group and a minority report from former Chief Justice Frank Clarke. I had the opportunity to read both and am discussing within my Department how I will progress them. I am satisfied with the need to increase the thresholds available to those seeking access to the civil legal aid scheme. Sometimes people confuse more money for the civil legal aid scheme as being more money for lawyers. It is not about lawyers; it is about ensuring citizens have access to the means by which they can vindicate their constitutional or statutory rights. Law is extremely complex. We keep producing vast amounts of it in this House and we also have European law on top of that. In order to navigate the law, the reality is we need legal advice and assistance. I propose in the short term to put the reports out for public consultation. While that is happening, I want the Deputy to know I will ask my Department to work on how we can give effect to some of the recommendations contained in the reports. There will be a consequence to increasing thresholds and making civil legal aid more accessible to people. This is something I want to achieve but the consequence is that more work will have to be done. I need to ensure there are resources on the ground for private practitioners and solicitors working within the legal aid board offices around the country to facilitate them in providing for this greater level of work. I thank the former Chief Justice for the report and I hope to be in a position to publish both reports shortly.

Sentiment score: 0.30

Yes, it will be addressed. When a very detailed report comes in - or indeed two reports; I have no objection to receiving majority and minority reports - it must be carefully considered. There is no point in me announcing I will implement the report and then people asking when this will be done and how that implementation will take place. As the Deputy will be aware, civil legal aid is provided by the legal aid board, primarily through a network of law centres and solicitors employed by the board. There are times when the board will engage private solicitors to supplement the services provided by board solicitors in certain areas of law on a case-by-case basis. I am aware of issues arising in respect of family law and predominantly women who must go before the courts because they are in a family law predicament. We need to ensure they have access to appropriate legal advice in order to facilitate them in vindicating their rights under the Constitution and under statute. It is progressing, the reports are completed and my Department is working on them. I hope to put in place a proposal in the near future for the Government.

Sentiment score: 0.21

I accept there is an issue in terms of solicitors being available to do this very important work. Part of the problem is that because the Irish economy is doing so well, it is attractive for solicitors to get work elsewhere, other than in the areas the Deputy is discussing here or other areas such as criminal legal aid under the criminal legal aid scheme. We need to ensure the fees that are payable are heightened to ensure we get solicitors who are prepared to do this valuable work. We need to recognise, and I welcome that the Deputy has acknowledged this, that there is a difference between the story that we are just getting more fees for lawyers and looking at the purpose of it. The purpose of paying more fees to lawyers is to ensure that the women the Deputy talks about, the individuals who want to access and vindicate their rights before the courts, are able to do that. They cannot do that unless they get access to legal advice. I accept that there is an issue and that the fees will have to increase to try to attract more solicitors to do this private work.

Sentiment score: 0.41

I thank Deputy McAuliffe for raising this question. I acknowledge his long-standing interest in this issue and his persistent raising of the matter, which is of significant importance. I have confirmed with my officials that there have been two historic allegations of child sexual abuse made in relation to staff of the Probation Service. Both relate to alleged incidents in the 1970s by a former staff member who is now deceased. When the first allegation came to the attention of the Probation Service in 2000, An Garda Síochána and relevant services were notified and a criminal investigation was initiated. In recent years, the Probation Service became aware of a second allegation against the same former staff member, who by that time was deceased. The matter is currently the subject of a legal claim which is being managed by the State Claims Agency on behalf of my Department. Since the most recent allegation referred to above, the victims' unit of the Probation Service has put out several communications to encourage any relevant victims to contact it. I have been advised that no further victims have come forward. The Probation Service has confirmed that it has no current allegations on hand. Like Deputy McAuliffe, I would encourage anyone who has been a victim of any kind of sexual assault to reach out for help and support and to report the matter to An Garda Síochána. There is also a range of victim support services available. These are listed on the victims' charter website. Deputy McAuliffe raised the issue of whether or not the Department considered the introduction of a redress scheme. As I said, there is a case currently being dealt with by the State Claims Agency, my Department is aware of one other case and no other victims have come forward. In all the circumstances, it would seem more appropriate to allow that case that is currently in the system to be concluded rather than starting a new process at this stage.

Sentiment score: -0.00

I thank the Deputy. He put that very sensitively and appropriately. I am aware of the allegations made against Scouting Ireland. I recall the "RTÉ Investigates" programme and, indeed, I very much recall the very powerful work done by Joe Duffy on his programme in interviewing people who had been subject of abuse while they were in the scouts. On the Probation Service, there was a slight overlap, certainly in the case of one individual concerned, between the Probation Service and the scouts. Of course, the vast majority of work done by the Probation Service was done in respect of people who were not children but, notwithstanding that, it is an issue that has to be closely watched. On the basis of the information we have at present, however, in circumstances where there are only two allegations, it would be difficult for me to recommend or propose some form of a redress scheme when the numbers are so limited. I note what the Deputy says, that there may be other people out there who are hesitant about coming forward, but I would be interested to hear his proposals as to how we could encourage them to do so.

Sentiment score: 0.14

I will make inquiries in respect of the case that is ongoing at present. If it is the case that there is clearly liability on the part of the State, I would like to see that case resolved in a mediated fashion. I will speak to the Attorney General in respect of that case. Obviously, the Deputy is correct that it puts many burdens on people to sue the State, but a couple of years ago the Attorney General published a protocol for how the State should deal with persons who were suing it. If it is the case that there is liability on the part of the State, I would like to see that liability acknowledged by the State. However, sometimes the difficulty in resolving a court case can be in respect of the quantum. I am not saying that is so in this particular case but if there is an issue in respect of quantum, that is when, as the Deputy suggested, a mediator could be put in place to try to see if a mediated settlement could be facilitated.

Sentiment score: 0.31

I thank Deputy Currie. I am pleased to be able to answer the Deputy's question this time as opposed to the previous time.

Sentiment score: 0.40

If I am answering the wrong question, my very vigilant Ministers of State will tell me I am doing something wrong. The Deputy is correct in stating that last week, I signed the regulations giving effect to the local community safety partnerships, LCSPs. They came into force on Monday of this week. As the Deputy will be aware, much work has already been done in respect of local community safety partnerships, but now we have the regulations in place and people will be aware that we have to put in place these partnerships as they are an essential part in ensuring that the public in those particular areas are served. The regulations outline clearly how the safety partnerships will operate in practice and will ensure that each partnership operates with transparency, focus and strong local engagement. The Deputy will be aware, from the report of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland, that community safety requires multi-agency co-operation. That is why the legislation specifically requires that we have not only gardaí and elected representatives from the local authorities on it, but also people from the HSE or Tusla, in order to recognise that many of the issues that arise do not only concern policing, but also relate to community safety and community partnership. Deputy Currie raised the issue in respect of her area in terms of her constituency of Dublin West. There is an issue there because administrative boundaries require that certain areas fall into neighbouring LCSPs but the overarching aim is to maintain a co-ordinated place-based response to community safety needs. I want the Deputy to be aware, in terms of her own constituency and, indeed, all other constituencies, that within my Department there is the National Office for Community Safety. It will have a responsibility in terms of providing guidance to local community safety partnerships as to how they should deal with issues in the area.

Sentiment score: 0.42

I will be taking an active role. It is an important time and occasion, now that these regulations have been signed and are being rolled out. The community partnerships will not be on their own trying to formulate their own guidance because, as I said, there will be a National Office for Community Safety, which is a statutory office that will be based within my Department. That office will be providing guidance for the partnerships with overlapping areas. Such collaboration can include exploring opportunities for joint initiatives, shared resources and joint meetings as well. As laid out in the regulations, each local community partnership may have up to 30 members. Mandatory members will include representatives from the local authority, An Garda Síochána, the Health Service Executive and the Child and Family Agency. Each local community safety partnership will be supported by two full-time permanent staff within the local authority. Each partnership will be led by a voluntary chair and vice chairperson who will be elected from among the membership. It is my intent to start meeting these partnerships. It is very important that all of us, and me in particular, start selling them and telling people about the benefits that come from them.

Sentiment score: 0.29

I agree with the Deputy regarding the K district in Blanchardstown. In fact, a couple of weeks ago, I went to Blanchardstown Garda station and had the pleasure of meeting the gardaí there. They do excellent work. It is a very demanding and busy station. The Deputy mentioned that I needed to get involved in directing the Garda Commissioner as to where Garda numbers should go. I will not do that. If I start doing that, it will then become a very politicised system whereby the Garda Commissioner simply responds to where the Minister wants gardaí to go. Where will that lead us in the future, if the Minister or Ministers of State ask for lots of gardaí to be put into their constituencies or to have more? I will not do that. I will leave An Garda Síochána, the Commissioner and the senior staff to make a determined calculation as to where they wish new Garda recruits to go. They are the best-positioned people to determine it and they assess all the factors. Just because a Garda recruit does not come to a station direct from Templemore does not mean that stations such as Blanchardstown do not get people transferred there.

Sentiment score: 0.15