Perhaps Deputy Rabbitte will be able to recommend a suitable printing machine.
I propose to avail myself of the opportunity which the debate on this motion present to do three things. First, I want to outline the nature and operation of the scheme to which the motion refers and which has been operated by successive Governments since the scheme was introduced by Government in the 1980s. Second, I propose to set the record straight concerning extremely serious allegations made about the grant of naturalisation in the case of two persons who have been named publicly — allegations which are based on misinformation and which appear to be grounded on nothing more or less than pre-election posturing and politicking. Third, I want to talk about changes in naturalisation and citizenship arrangements generally since this Government took office and I became Minister for Justice early last year.
First, to the scheme itself. Section 16 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act, 1956, which was inserted by section 5 of an Act of the same name in 1986, provides that the Minister for Justice may in his-her absolute discretion grant a certificate of naturalisation where the applicant has "Irish associations", even if the other conditions for naturalisation, or any of them, are not fulfilled.
It has been the policy and practice of successive Governments, from all sides of the House, to give favourable consideration to applications for naturalisation in the case of persons making or facilitating substantial investments in the State, where such investments have the aim of job creation or the preservation of jobs that might otherwise be lost. The consistent view, again of successive Governments of all political hues has been that, by being prepared to make a substantial investment in jobs in this country and by purchasing a residence here, applicants for naturalisation, assuming of course that there are no serious impediments to naturalisation on other grounds, should be deemed to have the "Irish associations" necessary for the grant of citizenship.
My understanding is that certain other countries, including EU countries, follow a similar policy and I believe that it would generally be considered to be more in accordance with the intention of the Legislature and the spirit of the legislation that we should, as a matter of normal practice, grant applications in such cases rather than refuse them in the knowledge that the grant will secure investment and the refusal may see the investment move elsewhere.
I am taking it that the correctness of the principle whereby foreign nationals who make substantial investments of this kind may be granted naturalisation is not in serious dispute. I do not see how it could be, given the record of successive Governments and the inherent good sense of interpreting the legislation in a way which would allow substantial investors in Irish jobs to be naturalised on the basis of Irish associations.
It is, of course, open to people to have different and legitimate points of view about how far we should go in this State in the use of the possibility of Irish citizenship to encourage investment by non-nationals. The reality is that this type of scheme is operated by many countries who are in competition with us in trying to attract foreign investment and, indeed, it would appear that the schemes available in some of these countries are far less rigid than ours.
Whatever about making adjustments to the existing arrangements — as I will explain later I had made some myself before this present situation blew up — I doubt very much if either those seeking investment in Irish business or the people out there looking for jobs would welcome a policy shift now which saw this country spurn substantial investment offers rather than grant naturalisation to the potential investors involved.
Many favourable naturalisation decisions were made over the years under the legislative provisions I have just mentioned — they run about 20 successful applications per year. The critical issue in all cases is whether proper procedures have been followed and whether the standard of "Irish associations", accepted by successive Justice Ministers and Governments, has been met. This brings me directly to the second issue, that is to the case which has been the subject of widespread and misleading publicity in recent days.
First of all to the facts, on which there is, I believe, a considerable amount of confusion and, as I have said, misinformation. My Department's files shows that on 10 July 1992 the managing director of a consultancy firm, which has submitted other, unrelated, applications for naturalisation, forwarded an application for naturalisation to my Department on behalf of the two persons whose names have been in the media and have been mentioned by Deputy McDowell. The consultancy firm submitted these applications through the Minister for the Environment, Deputy Michael Smith. The applicants were a mother and her son — not husband and wife as some appear to be assuming — and the application was based on the fact that, between them, the two people concerned had earlier invested £1.1 million in job creation in C & D Foods Limited. The company itself has confirmed that these jobs were created and maintained and confirmation was received by letter dated 15 July 1992 from a large and reputable firm of solicitors in Dublin that the husband of the woman and father of the man who had made the aforementioned investments had purchased a residence in Dublin.
Subsequent to that — on 25 November 1992 — the two investors made the required Declaration of Fidelity to the Nation and Loyalty to the State, in the District Court, in accordance with law and both were granted their naturalisation certificates on 15 December 1992.
There was nothing out of the ordinary or underhand, in other words, about the way in which this application was dealt with. It was not unusual for the company which submitted the application on behalf of the mother and son to make such applications; it was not unusual that the application would be submitted, in the first place, through another Minister; there was a substantial job creating investment involved; there was the family investment in a residence and the declarations required by law were made in court.
Deputies who have been Justice Ministers since this investment/naturalisation scheme was introduced, irrespective of their political colour, will know full well that they have granted several applications in similar circumstances once the relevant requirements were satisfied. Deputies who served as Ministers in other Departments, together with some, indeed, who did not serve as Ministers at all — again irrespective of their political colour — will also know full well that they have supported such applications.
If the representative of any party which has been in Government in that period is tempted to stand up and challenge what I have just said, I would strongly advise him or her, right now, to remain seated and have a word instead with his or her senior party colleagues. I would also strongly advise that they ask their colleagues whether any of them ever sought to extend the scheme so as to allow for the grant of naturalisation applications on the basis of investments not necessarily falling into the direct job creation category — for example, for investments in golf clubs. If they are told the truth about this they will also be told that the Government, on the recommendation of a Fianna Fáil Justice Minister, opposed the golf club move and that it failed. Deputy McDowell will not require cross-party consultations to get the facts, if indeed facts are of any interest to him.
Before I go any further, there is one sideshow which needs to be disposed of, that is the suggestion that there were Cabinet discussions on the application and that this somehow confirms that there was an element of chicanery afoot. While restricted, by law, in what can and cannot be disclosed about Cabinet meetings, I believe that it is not illegal for me to confirm that the issue was not submitted by my Department as an item for consideration by the Government. There was simply nothing for the Government to consider. There were informal discussions about the operation of the scheme from time to time, as there are about many other things not immediately before the Government for decision, but there was no Government decision — and none was required — concerning this particular application.
Proceeding further with the facts of the particular case, there is one fact which has not I believe so far emerged but which will surely demonstrate to any fair minded person that proper procedures were followed in this case. The man who is husband of the woman and father of the man granted naturalisation, himself applied — again through Minister Smith — for naturalisation in October 1993 but was routinely advised by an official of the Department of Justice that it could not be granted on the basis of the £1.1 million investments made by his wife and son or on the basis of the fact that they had acquired Irish citizenship. He was told that he would have to make his own investment if he was to qualify. The legislative term "Irish Associations", in other words, is, as a matter of normal routine, construed quite strictly by the Department of Justice.