Questions

554. Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the evidence base for raising the marriage/civil partnership residency requirement from three years to five, separately from the general increase in reckonable residence from five to eight. [68181/26]

555. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the projects that have received funding under the Ireland Against Racism Fund in each year since 2023, including the name of each recipient organisation; the amount awarded; the purpose of the project; the county or counties in which it operates and the amount actually drawn down to date; the mechanisms in place to assess the effective…

556. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the expenditure to date on the implementation of the National Action Plan Against Racism, by year, department or agency and programme; the measurable outcomes that have been achieved to date; whether a formal evaluation of the plan has been undertaken or is planned, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68363…

557. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration for an update on the operational implementation of the Gambling Regulation Act 2024; the sections of the Act that remain to be commenced; the number of licence applications received, determined and outstanding by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland to date, by licence type; the current staffing complement of the Authority agai…

558. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration given the disruption resulting from the criminal legal aid dispute, if he will now enter into direct negotiations with the representative bodies concerned or agree to independent mediation; the specific outstanding issues which, in his view, prevent resolution of the dispute; the steps he will take to ensure that access to legal repres…

559. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the total expenditure on accommodation contracts for IPAS centres in each of the past ten years; and the estimated proportion attributable to security services. [68388/26]

560. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether accommodation providers are required to disclose security expenditure as part of their contracts with the State; and, if not, whether he intends to introduce such a requirement. [68387/26]

561. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the reason security expenditure at a centre (details supplied) increased to €1.3 million in 2025 despite the centre being unoccupied; and if he will provide a breakdown of staffing, guarding hours and other security costs. [68386/26]

562. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the names of the security providers currently engaged at River Lodge, Newtownmountkennedy and the Midlands Accommodation Centre, Lissywollen; and the procurement process used to appoint those providers and the value and duration of each contract. [68385/26]

563. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the current average and median processing time for applications for grants of probate, broken down by solicitor applications, personal applications, online applications and paper applications, and by the Dublin probate office and each district probate registry. [68395/26]

564. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of applications for grants of representation currently awaiting processing, broken down by the Dublin probate office and each district probate registry; the number that have been awaiting processing for more than four, eight, twelve and sixteen weeks; and the measures being taken to reduce waiting times. [68396/26]

565. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration further to Parliamentary Question No. 806 of 16 September 2026, (details supplied), to identify the statutory, delegated, assigned or administrative basis for that vesting in respect of prison-grade staff; the date it took effect; whether the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation or…

566. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether the Courts Service is examining the use of artificial intelligence, automation or other digital technologies in the processing of probate applications to reduce administrative workload, identify incomplete or erroneous applications and improve processing times and increase efficiency; if so, the areas in which such technologie…

567. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether the Courts Service has established target processing times for probate applications; the current performance against those targets; and the further reforms that are planned to reduce the time taken from receipt of a complete application to the issuing of a grant. [68403/26]

568. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the declaration-of-interest and conflict-of-interest safeguards that apply where an officeholder is professionally involved in anti-racism training and consultancy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68435/26]

569. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of visa applications received from Palestinian students seeking to undertake third-level education in the State in 2025 and to date in 2026; the number approved, refused and awaiting decision; the number relating to applicants awarded fully-funded scholarships by Irish higher-education institutions; the principal grounds for…

570. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of persons subject to deportation orders currently in the State; the number of deportation orders signed, enforced and outstanding in 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026; the number of persons who have availed of voluntary return in each year; the average cost of an enforced return compared with a voluntary return; the measures b…

571. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the total expenditure on charter deportation flights in 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026, broken down by individual operation, destination, number of persons returned and cost per person; the expenditure on Garda escorts, medical personnel, interpreters and independent human rights observers associated with each operation where these cos…

572. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his Department has reviewed the entirety of the full Deep Table discussion episode on 6th August 2026, before concluding that the remarks made by an individual (details supplied) were made in a personal capacity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68432/26]

573. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the impact to date of the introduction of online probate applications through the Courts Portal on processing times, error rates and staff workload; the proportion of eligible applications now being submitted online; and the timeline for extending online applications to intestacy cases and personal applicants. [68399/26]

574. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the current staffing complement of the Probate Office and District Probate Registries; the number of vacancies in each; whether the Courts Service has assessed whether existing staffing levels are sufficient to meet current and projected demand; and whether additional resources will be provided where required. [68398/26]

575. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if comments (details supplied) are considered compatible with the responsibilities of an office; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68434/26]

576. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration his views on the way in which the protected disclosures process has been carried out in An Garda Síochána over the past ten years. [68416/26]

577. Deputy Eoin Hayes asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his attention has been drawn to the significant backlog in processing of join family visas at the Abu Dhabi office; whether measures are being taken to address it, particularly for spouses of Irish citizens; whether his Department recognises the impact that delays approaching two years is having on Irish citizens and their spouses; a…

578. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to provide a full and itemised list of all land, property and buildings owned or otherwise held by his Department and by each body and agency under the aegis of his Department in Cork city and in Cork county; the location; a description of the land or property; the current use; the floor area or acreage as appropriate; the manner in wh…