Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 454: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of people who are awaiting a decision on leave to remain here as per 31 August 2006. [30122/06]

Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 455: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of people who have sought leave to remain here, at his behest, since 1 June 2002. [30123/06]

Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 456: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of people who have been refused leave to remain here, at his behest, since 1 June 2002. [30124/06]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 454 to 456, inclusive, together.

In determining whether to make a Deportation Order or grant a person Temporary Leave to Remain in the State, I must have regard to the eleven factors set out in Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act, 1999, (as amended), and Section 5 (Prohibition of Refoulement) of the Refugee Act, 1996, (as amended). Temporary leave to remain is considered in every case regardless of whether representations are made by, or on behalf of, the persons concerned. Statistics are not maintained in a way which distinguishes between those who have made an application for leave to remain and those who have not. Moreover, it must be borne in mind that many of those who failed the asylum process, and who did not opt to return voluntarily or consent to deportation, nonetheless left the State before a decision to deport or grant leave to remain was made.

The total number of cases considered for deportation under Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act, 1999, (as amended), during the period 1 June, 2002, to 31 August, 2006, and the results thereof, are set out in the table below. Please note that the majority of these would have been persons who were refused Refugee Status in the State.

The figures in the table above do not include persons who have been granted temporary leave to remain in the State on the basis of parentage of an Irish born child either under the revised scheme announced in January, 2005, or under earlier arrangements, nor does it include those granted residency on the basis of marriage to Irish or EU Nationals or to persons granted Refugee Status. Many of these persons would have been considered for temporary leave to remain in the context of the deportation system described above. For example, in the case of the Irish Born Child Scheme initiated in January of 2005, a total of 17,877 applications for temporary leave to remain were received of which 16,693 have been granted.