Robert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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Question 617: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if the actions of a family member of a citizenship applicant can impact negatively on his or her application, for example, if the spouse of an applicant is in receipt of social welfare. [41186/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Section 15 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, provides that the Minister may, in his absolute discretion, grant an application for a certificate of naturalisation provided certain statutory conditions are fulfilled. The conditions are that the applicant must -

be of full age

be of good character

have had a period of one year's continuous residency in the State immediately before the date of application and, during the eight years immediately preceding that period, have had a total residence in the State amounting to four years

have, before a judge of the District Court in open court, in a citizenship ceremony or in such manner as the Minister, for special reasons, allows—

(i) made a declaration, in the prescribed manner, of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State, and

(ii) undertaken to faithfully observe the laws of the State and to respect its democratic values.

In accordance with the legislation I make decisions on naturalisation applications based on all of the information available to me. Each application is assessed on its own merits and for me to comment beyond that on the specific matter referred to by the Deputy, save only to say that I do not exercise my discretion in deciding on individual cases in either an arbitrary or capricious manner, would carry a danger with it of fettering that discretion as provided for in law.

Tom Fleming (Kerry South, Independent)
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Question 618: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality If he will expedite an application for naturalisation in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41194/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that an application for a certificate of naturalisation was received in January 2010 from the person referred to by the Deputy. The application is at an advanced stage of processing and will be finalised as expeditiously as possible. 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.

Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.

Tom Fleming (Kerry South, Independent)
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Question 619: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will expedite an application for naturalisation in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41195/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that an application for a certificate of naturalisation was received in January 2010 from the person referred to by the Deputy. The application is at an advanced stage of processing and will be finalised as expeditiously as possible. 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.

Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.