I refer to the reply to Question No. 155 of 14 May 2013. In that reply, I stated that I will be reviewing the work done to date in respect of the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill in consultation with my officials, following which I will decide on how best to progress the implementation of the Government's priorities, particularly those relating to the establishment of a single application procedure in the area of international protection.
The recent judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union in the case of HN C-604/12 arises from a request for a preliminary ruling under Article 267 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union from the Irish Supreme Court. The Court of Justice ruled that Council Directive 2004/83/EC, the principle of effectiveness and the right to good administration do not preclude a national procedural rule, such as that at issue in the main proceedings before the Irish Supreme Court, under which an application for subsidiary protection may be considered only after an application for refugee status has been refused. While the Court of Justice did add some conditions to its conclusion it does not appear to require Ireland, as a matter of European Union law, to introduce a single procedure for the examination of applications for international protection. Having received the ruling of the Court of Justice on the question raised, it is a matter for the Irish Supreme Court to complete its proceedings in relation to the case of HN.
