The main point that must be made is that the acquisition of Irish citizenship through the naturalisation process is a privilege, not a right. The discretionary nature of the naturalisation process is in keeping with international practice. Thus, it is not the case that a person who has been resident here has, after a period of time, or even an extended period of time, a right to naturalisation. In fact, it has been the case since 1935 that all decisions on naturalisation, even where all of the statutory conditions for naturalisation have been fulfilled, are expressed to be at the "absolute discretion" of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. This is the legal basis for the granting or refusing of an application for a certificate of naturalisation.
Since the Deputy has not provided details of any particular case or cases that he is concerned about, I can only deal with the matters he has raised on a general basis.
I have informed the House on a number of occasions that, in exercising the powers bestowed on the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform by the Oireachtas in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act, I have adopted a general policy that applicants for naturalisation, other than refugees and stateless persons, should have been supporting themselves and their families without recourse to State support for a three year period prior to applying for naturalisation. Furthermore, such persons must show, as far as is practicable, that they have the capacity to support themselves into the future. I apply this general policy to all applications for naturalisation unless the exceptional circumstances of a particular case suggest otherwise. I have no plans to review this policy at the present time.