John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)

No debate on the proposed referendum on citizenship would be complete without an examination of the historical record. In this respect I wish to refer to the laws enacted, measures adopted and structures put in place when I was Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform from 1997 to 2002.

When I became Minister in 1997 I inherited an immigration and asylum service which was completely outdated and grossly under-resourced. There was no legislative framework to deal with the asylum issue in a modern setting. Indeed, the most recent legislation in that area dated back to the quaintly named Aliens Act 1935.

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