Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

The Senator is asking me to provide for an automatic right of appeal to the Supreme Court against a High Court decision. The answer is no because that would transfer the problem for another few months from one court to another. Almost all the applicants are legally aided. It costs them nothing to take a case but it costs the State in terms of paying for the applicant's lawyers and its own. It would also cost the State, if I were to open the floodgates in this way, as the Supreme Court would be inundated with these cases, which would be brought solely for the purpose of creating delay without expense to the applicant. If such cases were taken in sufficient volume, the system would clog up and I will not go down that road.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

Government amendment No. 26:

In page 7, before section 6, to insert the following new section:

6.–(1) The Minister may prescribe ports to be approved ports for non-nationals arriving in the State from places or specified places outside the State for the purposes of the Aliens Order, 1946 (S.R. & O., No. 395 of 1946) ("the Order").

(2) A reference in the Order to an approved port shall be construed as a reference to an approved port prescribed under the section.

(3) Article 6(2) of, and the First Schedule to, the Order are hereby revoked.".