It is not the most significant change that I am going to be introducing as a Minister, to be frank with the Deputy. When we look at it, it is removing juries from the High Court in defamation actions. There is no right. I was listening to Deputy Boyd Barrett, who very carefully used his language. I was waiting for him to say it is a right, and in fairness, he did not - he said it is a principle. It is not a right to …
TDs / Jim O'Callaghan
Jim O'Callaghan
Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
13
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
306,120
words spoken in the chamber
304,929 as a minister, 1,191 as a TD
360
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
8
topics asked about
Across 6 departments
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
What they ask about
The subject headings the Oireachtas filed their questions under.
Who they ask
The departments their questions were addressed to.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Questions asked 13 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 1,001 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 13 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 0 | 17 |
| March 2025 | 0 | 45 |
| April 2025 | 0 | 34 |
| May 2025 | 0 | 33 |
| June 2025 | 0 | 44 |
| July 2025 | 0 | 88 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 0 | 95 |
| October 2025 | 0 | 65 |
| November 2025 | 0 | 11 |
| December 2025 | 0 | 41 |
| January 2026 | 0 | 71 |
| February 2026 | 0 | 68 |
| March 2026 | 0 | 83 |
| April 2026 | 0 | 45 |
| May 2026 | 0 | 73 |
| June 2026 | 0 | 49 |
| July 2026 | 0 | 81 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 0 | 11 |
| October 2026 | 0 | 47 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 598 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Asked about similar topics
Not enough questions on record to compare.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Dublin Bay South 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister for Justice 23 January 2025 to 4 June 2025
- office Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration 5 June 2025 to now
The reason I am here advocating this is that politics, as Deputy Kelly well knows, is about compromise. Deputy Boyd Barrett said at the outset that there are disadvantages to being in a smaller party. That is true because you cannot cover everything. However, there are some great advantages to being in a small party, and there are some real advantages to being an Independent - you never have to compromise.
They are …
Amendments Nos. 4 and 5 amend section 13 of the Bill, which introduces a defence for broadcasters where a defamatory statement is made during a live broadcast, where the broadcaster can demonstrate that it took reasonable and prudent steps to prevent the publication of such a statement.
Amendment No. 4 addresses a concern raised in the Seanad as to whether the defence would apply in circumstances where there is a br…
I am taking a note of what the Deputy is saying.
I want to start by thanking Deputies Devine and Carthy for introducing this important Bill. As has been indicated, the Bill seeks to seeks to amend Coco's Law by criminalising the generation of non-consensual intimate images and videos, and also by increasing the maximum penalties on conviction. At present, it is a criminal offence to generate images provided they are then distributed and-or published. I know that th…
It would. The Attorney General has advised that the proposed increase in the penalty would be a disproportionate penalty for an offence where there is no requirement to prove any criminal intent. The reason we introduced Coco's Law was because images were being created and recorded and then being published and distributed. This was clearly very damaging and upsetting for the individuals concerned. We need to look at …
I welcome the opportunity to address the House this afternoon to update it on road safety matters. I will be sharing my time with the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, and the Minister of State, Deputy Grealish, will be delivering the closing statement.
I would like to take the opportunity to offer my sincere condolences to the family of Grace Lynch. Neither the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, nor I can imagine th…
I did not. That is wrong.
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 Counci…
I thank Deputies Carthy and Gannon for their contributions. Deputy Carthy raised several issues in respect of Ireland's sovereignty. The fact these issues are being debated in this House, and subsequently will be debated and voted on in the Seanad, indicates Irish democracy is very much at the heart of the consideration of these proposals.
There have been three parts to the PNR agreement between the European Union a…
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 Counci…
I move:
"That the Bill be now read a Second Time."
I am very pleased to introduce the International Protection Bill 2026 to the House. Migration has been a distinctive feature of Ireland’s history. Few countries in Europe have been as affected by emigration over the past two centuries as Ireland, with millions having left in search of safe haven, economic prosperity and opportunities not afforded to them at home. I…
Because there was a democratic vote by the Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas, which I presume the Deputies accept.
In preparation for the commencement of the Act, my Department has already begun to operate elements of the new asylum border procedure and to transition gradually to fully implementing the provisions that will be set out in this legislation. This transition is being undertaken within the framework of the existing legislation, which is the International Protection Act 2015. To begin this transition, new readiness team…
I move the following Revised Estimates:
Vote 11 — Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation (Revised Estimate)
That a sum not exceeding €151,551,000 be granted to defray the charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of December, 2026, for the salaries and expenses of the Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public …
I move:
That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, pursuant to Standing Orders 103(2)(b) and 188(1).
I thank Deputy Carthy for his question. It is probably motivated by the "First Conviction" documentary that was on RTÉ in November of last year. It highlighted a conviction that was overturned by the Court of Appeal back in November 2021 on the grounds that court thought the interpretation services that were provided to the accused were unsatisfactory. I think the Court of Appeal judgment referred to very serious ina…
Every day of the week there are a series of cases going on in the Central Criminal Court and in the circuit criminal court for which translation services are required. That is part of the consequence of having a multicultural society in which people from all backgrounds end up as witnesses or accused before the court. Any person who is accused of a criminal offence and who needs the services of a translator will have…
The public can have full confidence in this. What happens in practice is that the Courts Service enters a contract with translation providers, those being, companies that provide translation services. A fundamental requirement of that contract is that the contracted company must ensure interpreters possess the qualifications and competence appropriate to the tasks for which they are employed. The contract agreed unde…
-----but this is not an issue in terms of undermining public confidence in the criminal justice system. It is a confident system.
I have been there.
I thank the Deputy for his question. Before I talk about legislation, I will repeat something he said there. Taking nitrous oxide is playing Russian roulette with your health. We know from what the HSE and the hospitals have said, there are many incidents of people suffering severe illnesses and damage to their health as a result of taking nitrous oxide. It can wreak severe neurological damage on an individual. It ca…
The Deputy can appreciate the difficulties that arise when we are dealing with something that is lawful, such as aerosol or spray deodorants. Obviously, we cannot ban them, but the Deputy is trying to put forward proposals that could facilitate their regulation. Even before we go down the avenue of starting to look at legislation, the most important thing we can do is to educate people and to warn young people about …
I agree with the Deputy that there certainly needs to be a two-pronged approach. We need to warn people. Sometimes we look at the drugs issue very much in terms of what legislation can be introduced. However, it is really about warning people of the dangers associated with taking drugs. Everyone in this House has seen terrible outcomes from people taking drugs. They are referred to as recreational drugs but there is …
Combating domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is a priority for the Government and for me. If the Deputy looks at the recent budget allocation and the recent establishment of Cuan, he will see that the Government has made a very specific decision that it wants a separate statutory agency to deal with this issue. We are putting in funding of €80 million in respect to this issue, which shows an increased investm…