Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy has rightly said, we do not know how long this has been going on. It has come to light because of vigilance at another airport. There has been an ongoing assessment of the situation at our airports. While the security of the airport is a matter for the airport authority, the point is that these people, in whatever number, never got as far as passport or immigration control.

It is true to say that the authorities at Dublin Airport Authority - the premier airport in the country - have vastly scaled up the assessments of passports coming through. Everybody has that check.

The Deputy asked about terrorists. In that context, this matter is assessed with the international organisations such as Interpol and Europol. There is no evidence that indicates any specific difficulty with particular people. The matter is kept under assessment on a constant basis, as should be the case. As more details emerge, there will be a full response from the Government on what is happening and on what needs to be done to secure our place and reputation internationally.

See this speech in context