Dr. Fergal Lynch:

I was very much struck by what Mr. Tyndall, the Ombudsman, said, in that regard, when he reported that people were saying that this was the case. I cannot identify specific cases where we would have been told that, but what I would like to do is to offer an absolute reassurance to all people using our international protection system that they have every right to make a complaint. There are well-developed structures in place for making those complaints and there is absolutely no question of them being in any way negatively affected as a result of having made a complaint. It is very important that we get that message across. I hope the complaint system that we now have in place and the fact that we have a resident welfare team and a customer service team in place helps get across the message that we are open to hearing people's complaints. We would far prefer to hear people's complaints and try to deal with them, rather than hearing about them subsequently or perhaps people feeling that they have to go elsewhere. They should have the right, and feel they have the right, to come to us as the people who can seek to resolve their issues. We are very much committed to doing that. I would like to emphasise the importance of getting across the message that people have this right and they certainly will not be victimised as a result of making a complaint.