Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 4 Feb 1999

Vol. 499 No. 5

Written Answers. - Asylum Applications.

Proinsias De Rossa

Question:

56 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of applications for asylum received in each month of 1998; the average time being taken to process these applications; the number of these applicants who have been served with deportation orders; the number who have either been deported or left the country voluntarily following the serving of deportation orders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3051/99]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. O'Donoghue)

The information sought by the Deputy is set out in the following tabular statement:

Monthly Breakdown 1998

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sept	Oct	Nov	Dec
Applications	321	425	632	407	390	440	449	407	313	246	278	318

Due to the very wide spectrum of cases and the considerable backlog of applications which I inherited on taking office as Minister, it is difficult to identify an average time from start to finish of the asylum determination process which would have any real meaning.

I can, however, inform the Deputy that by the end of 1998, all applicants who had sought asylum in this State before January 1997 had been afforded the opportunity of a substantive interview, first stage determination of asylum applications follows within a matter of weeks of the substantive interview in most cases. By July 1999 it is expected that all applicants who lodged a claim in 1997 will have been interviewed or offered an interview.

Simultaneously the task force which I put in place to deal with this matter is dealing with a mixture of new and old applications. At the current rates of progress and based on current application figures, I am advised that the task force will have dealt with the entire backlog of appli cations by July 2000 and from that date will be processing applications within weeks of arrival.

A total of 305 deportation orders were signed in 1998 and referred to the Garda authorities for enforcement. A number of these relate to rejected asylum applicants and asylum applicants dealt with under the Dublin Convention. A total of 86 persons subject to such orders left the State voluntarily during the period, one of which was a 1998 asylum applicant. A total of 64 persons were deported on foot of the deportation orders, 11 of which were 1998 asylum applicants removed under the provisions of the Dublin Convention. A further five orders relate to Dublin Convention cases currently the subject of judicial review. The whereabouts of many of those subject to deportation orders is unknown and it is likely that they have left the State.