Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The legislation states at section 14(1): "Where it appears to an officer referred to in section 13 that a person seeking to make an application for international protection". I am sure that in the cases I mentioned earlier, the children gave their dates of birth to the immigration officer at the port of entry when they entered the State, but they certainly were not treated as minors. Unfortunately, we cannot accept the Minister of State's reassurance that having someone simply give their date of birth as part of the interview process will ensure they will be treated as a minor. For that reason, it is important the Bill should allow for self-declaration as a minor.

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