International Protection Bill 2026: Committee Stage (Resumed)
Seanad Éireann — 2026-03-19
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Nicole Ryan (SF), Administrative Panel

I will speak briefly on amendments Nos. 39 and 41. Amendment No. 39 is quite straightforward. It ensures that applicants are clearly informed of two fundamental rights within their international protection process. These are the right to an appeals mechanism and the right to access legal representation, which are not extras in the system but rather core elements of the fairness we provide. The international protection process is complex and for many applicants it is unfamiliar and difficult to navigate. If an individual is not clearly informed of their right to appeal a decision or their right to access legal advice, then there is a real risk that those rights may not be exercised at all. This amendment simply ensures clarity. It makes it explicit that applicants must be informed of these rights at an early stage in the process. That benefits not only the applicant but equally the system as a whole.
Amendment No. 41 looks at detention as a last resort. It seeks to bring clarity and balance to the use of detention powers within the international protection system. It provides that arrests without warrant or detention of an applicant should be a measure of last resort and only when there are reasonable grounds to believe that the individual has a documented history of violent criminal offending or is a present danger to public security or public order, which would enhance oversight when it may come to deportation. This is about setting a clear and proportionate threshold. Detention is one of the most serious actions the State can take and it should not be used lightly or as a default. At the same time, we have to recognise that there are circumstances where intervention is necessary to protect public safety and this amendment strikes to seek that balance. It ensures that detention powers remain available where there is a genuine and evidenced risk but also places important limits to their use. It requires that decisions are based on documented history, reasonable grounds or a present risk, not on the assumption or the status and not on broad or undefined concerns. This is about ensuring a system that is fair, proportionate and grounded in evidence and protects both the State and the public as a whole.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-03-19/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:45+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-03-19