Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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1345. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of immigration officials who were rostered to work at Dublin Airport on 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 17, 18 and 19 June 2022; the breakdown of staff rostered by day and shift and the number assigned to inbound European Union and non-European Union kiosks; if all available immigration kiosks were staffed at all times to check passports and or documentation; and the number of persons who were refused entry on each of the dates. [30313/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will appreciate, every State has a duty to protect its borders and to refuse entry to people not entitled to enter the State. This is a fundamental exercise of State sovereignty, which is necessary to protect the security of the State and to prevent illegal immigration. The exercise of powers in this area is at all times subject to the law and to respect for individual rights.

The Border Management Unit (BMU) of my Department has responsibility for front-line immigration duties at Dublin Airport only. Other ports of entry are the responsibility of the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB).

The Border Management Unit operates on a 24/7 basis. There are eight teams comprising of 17 Immigration Control Officers, rostered across four shifts and deployed to the two Terminals.

Given that arrivals are not evenly dispersed throughout the day, the BMU officers carry out a range of immigration duties and are allocated across various immigration points as required. 

The allocation of immigration personnel is designed to maximise the number of immigration booths operating to address demand during peak periods. This is further supported by automated eGates. 

Under Section 4 of the Immigration Act 2004, an Immigration Officer must determine whether a non-EEA national should be granted leave to land and thus gain entry to the State. In performing their duties, an Immigration Officer is required to consider all of the circumstances of the non-EEA national at the time of entry.

A refusal of leave to land by the BMU is first considered by the Immigration Officer and is always signed off by a more senior officer. There is no appeal process, but it is important to note that a refusal of leave to land, unlike a deportation or a removal order, is specific to the arrival instance and does not preclude the person from seeking to enter the State in the future if they satisfy the conditions for entry. The principle of non-refoulement applies to these decisions.

If a person indicates or is identified as being in need of international protection, they are admitted to the international protection process. However, they will still be recorded as a refusal of leave to land.

The following table sets out the number of persons refused leave to land, and, of those, the number who claimed asylum at Dublin Airport on the dates requested: