Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 532: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the position regarding an application for naturalisation in respect of persons (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22374/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Valid applications for a certificate of naturalisation from the persons referred to by the Deputy were received in the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) in August 2007 and my predecessor decided in his absolute discretion to refuse the applications. The persons concerned were informed of the Minister's in a letter issued on 15th October, 2009.

It is open to the persons concerned to lodge a new application for a certificate of naturalisation if and when they are in a position to meet the statutory requirements applicable at that time.

The granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour which confers certain rights and entitlements not only within the State but also at European Union level and it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process.

I should remind the Deputy that queries in relation to the status of individual Immigration cases may be made direct to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. The service enables up-to-date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek this information through the more administratively expensive Parliamentary Questions process.