Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

In terms of the Deputy's earlier comments, it is important to say that someone arriving in Ireland has a right to claim international protection and often people have to flee a country on fake documents because they are being chased or repressed by a particular regime. If one were looking to flee one's country, if one were an Iranian feminist dissident or something like that, it is unlikely that the Iranian regime would give one an exit paper in which case one may have to flee the country on forged documents. That is an unfortunately consequence of the world we live in.

People have a right to apply and there is a process. We all recognise the process for assessing someone's international protection application has to speed up. At the end of that process, there is a determination. Some people may be granted international protection and some will not. In the latter event, those people will be deported. However, that is the process that works.

It is worth saying - I would have said this to Deputy Healy-Rae - I had a good meeting with the Kerry Community Response Forum with the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, and others, and I heard first hand the amazing work that is happening in Kerry in terms of welcoming both Ukrainians and international protection applicants. It was positive to see that real groundswell all over the county in terms of the support that is being given by community, voluntary and statutory groups.

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