The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child issued its concluding observations on the Third and Fourth Periodic Report by Ireland in February 2016. The Committee acknowledged the ongoing efforts of Ireland to-date and made a number of further recommendations regarding the protection of childrens' rights here. One such recommendation, as was pointed out by the Deputy, concerns formal procedures for conferring immigration status on children and their families who are in an irregular situation. Ireland is due to report again to the Committee in October 2021. In the interim this Department will study any relevant recommendations in detail and will consult with other State and non-government organisations as necessary and will actively contribute to a whole of Government response to the issues raised.
On the broader question of a general regularisation scheme for persons who are undocumented or in an irregular situation I would direct the Deputy to my reply to Parliamentary Questions 101 and 103 of 21 June 2016 where I indicated that I have no immediate plans to introduce such a scheme and that any such scheme would have very significant implications for the State, financially and otherwise.