Results 41-60 of 18,726 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: Being reasonable, it is more practical in this day and age to look at air passengers, who are the majority of people who travel to this country from outside the common travel area. In those cases reasonable steps to comply will establish a full defence under section 5. The requirement will be complied with if the carrier arranges that a passenger travelling on his or her plane produces a...

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: They do. The Deputy seems to think that because a different person does the check-in this affects the operation of this law. If the carrier delegates that duty to someone operating a check-in counter at a foreign airport—

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: it is the carrier's duty to ensure he or she is carrying people who are documented. If a carrier makes an arrangement with Servisair in Charleroi airport, for example, to carry out this function the carrier will be guilty if he or she produces someone in Ireland who is not documented. The carrier may say he or she has done everything that could reasonably be done. One of the things the...

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: Either we are interested in making an operable law or we are not. The Labour Party must decide if Ireland is to be the only country in the European Union which does not have carrier liability. Has the Labour Party an ideological objection to this or does it not?

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: Let me deal with this matter. Either we have a carriers' liability law or we have not and it is either a workable law or it is not.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: The more the Senator interrupts the bigger and the deeper the hole he is digging for himself. It is probable that tonight's proceedings will not receive great publicity. If the people of Ireland heard the specious arguments being thrown up, one after another, with the best of humour, against putting in place a workable law which puts Ireland on a par with every other European Union member...

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: The reality is that what I am being asked to do here, because Senator Ryan insisted on it, is to debate the substitution of one word for another. He would not allow me group amendments because he is so enthusiastic to subject the Bill to line by line scrutiny. I am dealing with a suggestion that all persons should not be obliged to disembark in conformity but only non-nationals should be...

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: I do not see anything over the top in requiring a carrier to present all passengers to an immigration officer for examination. If I was to accede to the Senator's amendment, it would mean that only non-nationals would have to be presented. Therefore, if people scarpered across the airport fields or disappeared off the ferry and ran, I would not be able to prove who they were. I would then...

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: An Irish citizen is prima facie entitled to enter Ireland. This does not inhibit the rights of Irish citizens to behave as they wish. All it does is cast on the carrier the obligation to take all reasonable steps to ensure everybody on board a aeroplane or ship presents himself or herself to an Irish immigration officer. Whether the Irish citizen has rights in those circumstances is immaterial.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: The Senator should consult the Act, the name of which he does not like – the Aliens Act and the aliens order. "Permission to land" is the term used in the Act, which can mean somebody standing on land. It is given a specific statutory meaning – it effectively means permission to enter the State.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: I must admit to some surprise that those amendments have been tabled. Section 2(1)(c) places a requirement on a carrier to ensure that a non-national has the proper documentation – a valid passport or other valid document which establishes his or her nationality and identity and, if required, a valid visa or transit visa. All that is required of a carrier is that he or she carries out the...

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: I take the Senator's point but my response is to ask if this Bill should be emasculated to the point that anybody presenting without travel documents at any check-in anywhere in Europe or America or wherever and intending to claim asylum in Ireland should be ushered on board a plane? If that is to be the situation, not only should we abandon this Bill, we should also abandon all immigration...

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: At least such people are now required to provide visas.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: Many people are doing so.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: It was the Senator who used that term. There are roughly 12,000 people claiming asylum status in Ireland.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: Like Russian dolls.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: The Senator should look at the definition in section 1.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: The term "vehicle" includes those things.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: I have listened to the debate with interest and it seems that most of the contributions are based on the proposition that there is some kind of radical chic to completely confuse economic migration with asylum seekers. This amendment deals with asylum seekers, it has nothing to do with Irish people going to America.

Seanad: Immigration Bill, 2002: Committee Stage. (18 Dec 2002)

Michael McDowell: We are dealing with an amendment which seeks to provide that a person presenting himself or herself as an asylum seeker should be allowed to board an aircraft.