Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 24 Jun 2003

Vol. 569 No. 3

Written Answers. - Deportation Orders.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Question:

382 Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform further to Parliamentary Question No. 408 of 17 June 2003, regarding the deportation of a person travelling to Ireland on a valid business visa, if he will clarify his reference to a meeting in the UK. [17637/03]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

As I stated in my reply to Question No. 408 on 17 June 2003, while the person concerned claimed to be coming to Ireland for business purposes a person he was expecting to meet was in the UK and had not made any arrangements to meet him in Ireland. In addition, it transpired that a second contact person – a non EU national – was also resident in the United Kingdom although telephone contact with that person was terminated by him during the course of inquiries. Although the person to whom the Deputy refers was in possession of a valid Irish visa he did not have a UK visa and had been removed from the UK in December 2002.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Question:

383 Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform further to Question No. 394 of 17 June 2003, regarding ongoing deportations of citizens of the ten States which will become members of the European Union in May 2004, if such deportees will be allowed back into the State once their country of citizenship becomes a member of the EU. [17638/03]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Question:

384 Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform further to Parliamentary Question No. 394 of 17 June 2003, regarding ongoing deportations of citizens of the ten States which will become members of the European Union in May 2004, the number of such deportations by country per year and in total since the Nice treaty was concluded. [17639/03]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 383 and 384 together.

Nationals of the accession countries who have been in the State illegally and who have been the subject of a deportation order cannot expect to be automatically allowed to re-enter the State following the accession of their countries of origin to the European Union. Freedom of movement for European Union citizens is not an absolute right. It is subject to limitations justified on grounds of public policy, public security and public health.

The Nice treaty came into effect on 1 February 2003. The following are the numbers of deportations of citizens from the ten accession States, due to be admitted to membership of the European Union from May, 2004 since the commencement of the Treaty up to 31 May 2003.

Countries	Deportations between 1/2/2003 and 31/5/2003
Latvia	3
Lithuania	7
Estonia	4
Poland	13
Hungary	0
Slovenia	0
Slovakia	0
Czech Republic	6
Malta	0
Cyprus	0