Vol. 514 No. 2
121 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the circumstances in which Irish citizenship or naturalisation will be considered for the family of persons (details supplied) in County Kildare who are Irish citizens in view of the fact that the family has good employment prospects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3868/00]
Section 15 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, provides that the Minister for Justice may grant a certificate of naturalisation, at his absolute discretion, where statutory provisions are complied with. These provisions require that an applicant is of full age, is of good character, has five years residence in the State in the past nine years, the last year being a year of continuous residence, intends to continue to reside in the State following naturalisation and makes a declaration of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State. Section 16 of the Acts provides that the Minister may, in specific instances, waive some or all of the statutory requirements when considering an application.
Applications were submitted in respect of the persons referred to in September 1999. These were duly considered and it was decided not to grant certificates of naturalisation in these cases at this time. The persons referred to were notified of my decision in January 2000.
The Deputy may also wish to note that the persons referred to are not precluded from entering into employment provided that they comply with the immigration laws of the State.
