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Tithe an OireachtaisAn Comhchoiste um Dhlí agus Ceart, Comhionannas, Cosaint agus Cearta na mBanTuarascáil Deiridh 20071 Eanáir — 29 Aibreán 2007Aibrean, 2007Houses of the OireachtasJoint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s RightsFinal Report 20071st January — 29th April 2007April, 2007
Tithe an OireachtaisAn Comhchoiste um Dhlí agus Ceart, Comhionannas, Cosaint agus Cearta na mBanTuarascáil Deiridh 20071 Eanáir — 29 Aibreán 2007Aibrean, 2007Houses of the OireachtasJoint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s RightsFinal Report 20071st January — 29th April 2007April, 2007Contents
Appendices
Members of the Joint Committee
Senators
Deputy Niall Blaney replaced Máire Hoctor on the 8th February, 2007 1. Content and Format of ReportThis report has been prepared pursuant to Standing Order 84 (3), (4), (5) and (6) (Dáil Éireann) and Standing Order 69 (3), (4), (5) and (6) (Séanad Éireann) which provide for the Joint Committee to — •undertake a review of its procedure and its role generally •prepare an annual work programme •lay minutes of its proceedings before both Houses; and •make an annual report to both Houses. At its meeting on 4th April 2007, the Joint Committee agreed that all these items should be included in this report covering the period of Januray 2007 to the dissolution of Dáil Eireann on 29th April 2007. 2. Functions and PowersThe Dáil Select Committee was established by Order of Dáil Éireann of 16 October 2002 to consider Bills, Estimates for Public Services and the terms of any international agreement involving a charge on public funds which come within the aegis of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and the Department of Defence. The Dáil Select Committee under the same Order was enjoined with a Select Committee of Séanad Éireann, established by Order of Séanad Éireann of 17 October, 2002, to form the Joint Committee on Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s Rights. Among the principal functions of the Joint Committee are to consider — •public affairs administered by the Departments of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and Defence •matters of policy for which the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform and the Minister for Defence is responsible •legislative and expenditure proposals of the Departments •scrutiny of EU legislative proposals •certain matters relating to bodies under the aegis of the Departments. The Orders of Reference of the Dáil Select Committee and the Joint Committee are set out at Appendix 1. 3. Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Convenors and MembershipDeputy Seán Ardagh was elected as Chairman of the Joint Committee on 12th November, 2002. Deputy Gerard Murphy was elected as Vice-Chairman of the Joint Committee on 9th November, 2004. The Chairman of the Joint Committee is also Chairman of the Dáil Select Committee. Deputies Niall Blaney and Kathleen Lynch are the Convenors of the Committee whose function it is to ensure the availability and attendance of Members or their substitutes for meetings of the Committee and, in particular, to ensure Members’ availability for divisions. 4. Meetings, Attendance and RecordingMeetings of the Joint Committee and Select Committee took place in the Committee Rooms in Leinster House 2000. Meetings were in public unless otherwise ordered by the Committee. Transcripts of proceedings of the Joint Committee and the Select Committee including attendees, in public session are available on www.oireachtas.ie on the Committee pages. Televised coverage of public meetings of the Committee were broadcast live within the Leinster House complex and was available for subsequent public broadcasting by RTE and TV3. An Official Report (Parliamentary Debates) of the public meetings of the Committees is published and may be purchased from the Government Publications Sales Office, Sun Alliance House, Molesworth Street, Dublin 2. The Official Reports may also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas website at www.oireachtas.ie Copies of other reports published by the Joint Committee may be obtained from the Clerk, Joint Committee on Justice, Equality Defence and Women’s Rights, Kildare House, Kildare Street, Dublin 2. A list of these reports is set out at Section 7. 5. Number and Duration of MeetingsThe Joint Committee met on 4 occasions in the year under report. The number of hours’ discussion involved in these meetings was in excess of 4 hours. The date and subject matter of each meeting is set out in Section 6.1 below and at Appendix 2. The Dáil Select Committee met on 6 occasions in the year under report and the number of hour’s discussion involved in these meetings was in excess of 5 hours. The date and subject matter of each meeting is set out in Section 6.2 below and at Appendix 3. Transcripts of proceedings of the Joint Committee and the Select Committee meetings in public session are available on www.oireachtas.ie on the Committee pages. 6. Work of the Committee6.1 Joint CommitteeOn the 4 occasions the Joint Committee met, it dealt with the matters set out in the following subparagraphs. 6.1.1 EU motions (In respect of Title IV)The Committee was referred one motion by the Houses for detailed consideration of a proposal for a council framework decision on the fight against organised crime. The relevant Minister attended at the meetings. Having had a debate on the matter, the Committee decided that no further debate on the matter was needed in the Houses. 6.1.2 Other Motions referred to the CommitteeDuring the year 2007, the Joint Committee considered a motion on the following: •Motion re — a proposal for a Council Decision on the establishment, operation and use of the second generation Schengen information system (SIS II) 6.1.3 LegislationThe Joint Committee heard presentations from the following group on the Defamation Bill 2006. •National Newspapers of Ireland 6.1.4 Other IssuesThe Committee also had meetings on the following issue: •The Joint Committee heard presentations from the following groups on Domestic Violence: •Dublin 12 Domestic Violence Service, •Sexual Violence Centre Cork, •National Domestic Violence Intervention Agency, •Women’s Aid •OSS Cork 6.2 Dáil Select CommitteeThe full list of Select Committee meetings in 2007 is set out in Appendix 3. BillsThe Select Committee completed 2 Bills during 2007: •Prisons Bill 2006 •Defence (Amendment) No. 2) Bill 2006 EstimatesThe Committee considered all Estimates covered by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Votes 19; 20; 21; 22 & 23 including Output Statements) and the Department of Defence (Votes 36 & 37 including Output Statements). MotionsThe Select Committee also considered a motion regarding a Memorandum of Understanding concerning the Principles for the Establishment and Operation of a Multinational Battlegroup to be made available to the European Union and to the Memorandum of Understanding concerning the Principles for the Cooperation Regarding the OHQ Function for the Nordic Battlegroup. 7. ReportsDuring 2007, the Joint Committee published the following reports: 7.1 Reports•Restorative Justice 7.1.1 Travel Reports•Report on 7th Annual Conference of the Network of Parliamentary Committees for equal opportunities for women and men in the Parliaments of the EU Member States and the European Parliament (NCEO) Copenhagen 21-23 November 2002. •Report on 7th Conference of the NCEO-CCEC Network of Parliamentary Committees for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in the European Union Extraordinary Meeting in Athens, Greece on 31st March 2003. •Report on Study Visit to San Francisco to Examine Intoxicating Liquor Law Reform (Recent Developments in Reducing the Level of Abuse by Young People) from 22nd to 29th April 2003. •Report on 8th Annual Conference of the Network of Parliamentary Committees for Equal Opportunities of the Parliaments of the European Member States and of the European Parliament (NCEO) in Rome, Italy from 20th to 24th November, 2003 •Report on Study Visit to Toronto and Quebec, Canada, to Examine Recent Innovations in the Canadian Criminal Justice System 18th —26th September 2004. •Report on Third Conference of the European Forum for Victim- Offender Mediation and Restorative Justice in Budapest, Hungary from 13th to 16th October 2004. •Report on Report on Study Visit to India to Examine Recent Developments in the Criminal Justice System, Civil Law Reform and the Empowerment of Women 18th to 24th October 2004. •Report on Study Visit to Estonia, Latvia and Poland to Examine Recent Law Reform, Harmonisation of Criminal and Civil Law at EU Level and Recent Developments in Policing with particular emphasis on Community Policing 4th to 10th April 2005. •Report on Study Visit to London to Examine Community Policing from 22nd to 24th April 2005. •Report on EU Justice and Home Affairs Committees Conference on “Responses to the Threat of Terrorism and Effects on Communities” 23rd - 24th November 2005. •Report on Study Visit to Canada, to Examine Recent Innovations in the Canadian Criminal Justice System 10th —19th March 2006. •Report on EU level seminar “The Prüm Convention: Integration or Fragmentation of European Justice and Home Affairs?” in the European Parliament in Brussels, on 22nd June, 2006. •Report on the Fourth Summer Conference on Defence, in Aix-en Provence, Mairseille, France on 11th and 12th September, 2006. •Report on Visit to Japan (30 October — 2 November 2006). 7.2 Motions referred by both Houses on EU matters
8. TravelThe Joint Committee undertook the following travel in accordance with its Orders of Reference in connection with its work programme.
10. Functions and PowersThe Joint Committee is currently satisfied with its present procedures and role. It has no plans to request changes to its Orders of Reference in 2007.
______________________________________ Seán Ardagh, T.D., Chairman of the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s Rights, April, 2007. |
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