International Protection Bill 2026: Committee Stage (Resumed)
Seanad Éireann — 2026-03-19
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Jim O'Callaghan (FF), Dublin Bay South

Section 209, which deals with the annual report of the chief inspector, provides that he is required "not later than 3 months after the end of each year" to produce and "submit to the Minister an annual report on the performance of the Chief Inspector’s functions". I am then required to "cause a copy of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas". It is not unusual that the Bill provides that any part of the report that would "prejudice the security of a designated asylum border facility", "prejudice the interests of national security" or "purport to assign criminal or civil liability" can be "redacted". Under the prisons legislation, I receive reports from the Inspector of Prisons but there are parts of those reports that can be redacted if it is in the public interest to do so. It is entirely a matter for the chief inspector to put what he wants into his report. I certainly hope I will be able to lay a full, unredacted version of his report before the Houses.

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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