Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

The circumstances surrounding the import of an explosive substance to Ireland from the Slovak Republic on 2 January 2010 are a matter of serious concern to me and to the Government.

The background to this incident is that the Dublin Airport authorities contacted the Garda Síochána on 5 January 2010 to inform it that they had received a communication purporting to be from the Slovak authorities apparently to the effect that, due to an error during an airport security test exercise on 2 January 2010 at Poprad-Tatry Airport, a sample package containing explosives was left in the luggage of a passenger who boarded a flight for Dublin.

Gardaí moved swiftly to retrieve the explosive substance and, with the assistance of an Army explosive ordnance disposal team, ensured that it did not pose any further danger to the public. It emerged that the passenger, who had resided in Ireland for a number of years, was completely unaware when he was travelling to Dublin that the sample had been placed in his luggage.

I spoke directly with the Slovak Minister of Interior, Mr. Kalinak, about the incident and he gave me an unequivocal apology. I conveyed to him in the clearest possible terms my deep concern about the situation which had arisen. It is utterly unacceptable that explosive material should have been placed on an unsuspecting passenger in this way. I had occasion to meet the official Slovak representative at the recent meeting of EU Justice and Interior Ministers and he conveyed to me the regret of the Slovak authorities and apologised for the incident. He also indicated that measures have been put in place in Slovakia to avoid a recurrence.

The Garda Commissioner has appointed a detective chief superintendent to inquire into all the circumstances surrounding the incident. That inquiry is ongoing and a report is awaited. Until the report is available, it is not possible to say for definite how the error occurred in Slovakia and what actions were taken by the authorities there when it was discovered. I have received an assurance from the Slovak Minister that his officials will fully co-operate with the Garda inquiry and when the report is completed I will consider what further action, if any, is required on my part.

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