I thank Deputies Gannon and Kelly for putting down this amendment. It is important to put it in context. What we are discussing here is chapter 2 of the provision that entitles me as Minister to designate a certain centre as a screening centre. That is provided for in section 21 of the legislation.
The next section we are dealing with, which is under discussion here, is the obligation to travel to a screening centre…
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
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306,120
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- 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
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I want to respond to Deputy Kelly's point. I listened very carefully to what Deputies Kelly, Gannon and Gibney had to say. I take it seriously and I am fully aware of what political objective they are seeking through these amendments. They are perfectly legitimate, and I respect them.
We are talking about an amendment to section 22. It is headlined, "Obligation to travel to screening centre". I have not designated a…
However, I do sometimes consider legislation from the point of view of how it will be determined if it is before a court or a judge. The amendment the Deputy wants to insert relates to an applicant who is a presumed or identified victim of trafficking. I am not trying to make a legal point, but I need to know, and a court would need to know with precision how the Minister knows if somebody is a presumed victim of tra…
No.
I am very much aware of the investigation, suspension and prosecution of the gardaí referred to by Deputy O'Dea. The most important fact to emphasise is all those gardaí were acquitted. That is how the administration of justice operated. It obviously operated in an impartial and independent way. As to whether or not there are questions for Garda management, any time there is an acquittal there may be reflections on w…
I move:
That provision be made in the Act giving effect to this resolution for the charging, in accordance with the regulations made under section 146 of the Act, of the fee (if any) as may be prescribed by the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, in respect of an application, in such form and accompanied by such information as the Minister may specify, for a travel document by a person concerned.
Are we discussing amendment No. 2? Amendment No. 1 has been ruled out of order.
I did not say that.
I thank colleagues for their contributions. I recognise this is a very considerable piece of legislation. As some other colleague as indicated, it is the most important reform of Ireland's asylum laws in the State's history.
The criticism is that it is being rushed. I will inform Members about the history of this legislation and how we have got to today and take on board some of the criticisms that have been made.
…
I do not rule amendments out of order.
I am okay.
I frequently get invitations, which I welcome, from the Deputy's justice committee. I turn up and I answer a series of questions on international protection accommodation, international protection processing times or the International Protection Office. I have done it before and I have no difficulty doing it again. What we cannot do is turn the Committee Stage of this important legislation into a procedure that is th…
Once the legislation is enacted I will then identify when I am going to sign commencement orders under it. That always applies in respect of legislation. What needs to happen now is the Deputy needs to move amendments Nos. 2, 3 and 4 if we want to-----
Are the Deputy's amendments not in respect-----
Okay.
I move amendment No. 5:
In page 16, between lines 34 and 35, to insert the following:
" "absconding" means the action by which an applicant does not remain available to the competent administrative or judicial authorities of a Member State, such as by leaving the territory of the state without permission from the competent authorities, for reasons which are not beyond the applicant’s control;".
This amendment is b…
Yes, that is correct.
It goes in there because it will be in this Act that we will have a definition.
Yes, it will be first definition of "absconding".
The purpose of it is to give an effect to a definition that is required under the reception conditions directive. There will be further amendments during the progress of the legislation through the Seanad in respect of the reception conditions but it is appropriate at this stage to have the definition of "absconding" within the legislation. Deputy Gannon asked whether it will apply if somebody travelled from the Repu…
Can the Deputy repeat that?
That is not an issue in terms of what is in the legislation. The number of deportation orders that were signed last year was in the region of over 4,000. Regarding people leaving the country who have deportation orders, I believe and the Department believes that if somebody is served with a deportation order in Ireland, it is very difficult to remain. They do not get any social protection payments. They cannot work w…
I will briefly go back to the query raised by Deputy Gannon. I was probably too definitive in the response I gave to him in terms of the definition of "absconding". The definition states: "means the action by which an applicant does not remain available to the competent administrative or judicial authorities, such as by leaving the territory of the member state without permission from the competent authorities, for r…
There are difficulties in policing the travel of people from both sides of the Border. That is unquestionably the case. However, it is not correct to say there is no lawful way of policing that. The Border management unit does work there. An Garda Síochána is engaged and if people are not citizens of the UK or Ireland, they are not entitled to cross the Border. I have to keep emphasising that. Simply because that is …
I will deal with Deputy Farrelly's point first. "Not beyond the applicant's control" may include circumstances where an applicant is outside of the jurisdiction out of their own control and taken outside the jurisdiction. The purpose there is to try absolve them in respect of that.
In reply to Deputy Ó Súilleabháin, I can do many things in this Bill. I cannot get Irish unity in the legislation.