Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Question 46: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the full cost to the State of the recent deportation by air of 13 Chinese nationals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9791/06]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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Thirteen adults, 11 males and two females, were deported to Beijing in China by charter flight on 21-22 February 2006 at a total cost of €255,539. This was the first such charter flight to China and, because of the long distance between Dublin and Beijing, it required two fuel stopovers in Leipzig, Germany and Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The flight had a medical team of a doctor and nurse. The flight was chartered through a UK company, Air Partner PLC, which is contracted to the Department following an EU-wide tender competition in 2005.

The above cost does not include Garda expenses associated with this removal operation. I am advised by the Garda Commissioner that, given the wide range of immigration duties performed by the Garda Síochána and the Garda National Immigration Bureau in particular, it is not possible to identify the particular pay and overtime costs incurred by the Garda on charter flights. However, the Commissioner informs me that charter flights involve a lower ratio of Garda escorts to deportees than is the case using conventional scheduled flights, resulting in savings to the Garda budget.

Of the 13 returnees, four had criminal convictions of various types. This charter was arranged principally to facilitate the removal of a number of persons who had frustrated previous attempts to remove them on commercial flights through violent and disruptive behaviour.