Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Solidarity)
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41. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he will stop deporting children; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36515/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I am fully committed to ensuring that Ireland’s immigration system is robust and rules based. The enforcement aspects of our laws, including deportation orders, are an essential requirement for the system to work effectively.

A deportation order is a legal order to leave the State. If a person does not remove themselves from the State following the issuance of a deportation order, they will be removed.

I can advise the Deputy that I do not intend to introduce a policy that would prevent the removal of children and families who are subject to deportation orders. Any such policy would make Ireland an outlier in Europe and could encourage more people to come here with children, knowing that they could not be removed regardless of the outcome of their case.I can assure the Deputy, that my officials aim to process families in a holistic manner and the consideration of a child’s immigration case is highly dependent on the status of their parents. Each child’s circumstances are examined in detail before a deportation order is made. If deportation orders are made against a family, the parents are informed of this and are required to engage with Gardaí to make arrangements to leave Ireland.I recognise that an enforced removal is an unfortunate and challenging experience for a child, which is why they are carried out only as a measure of last resort when the family concerned has not removed themselves from the State. I can advise the Deputy that children have only been returned as part of family units.

The preferred option is to return people voluntarily and my Department operates a voluntary return programme to assist people to return prior to the issuance of a deportation order. This programme offers families a reintegration grant to help them resettle in their home countries.People are strongly encouraged to avail of this option, and are informed of this option at each stage of the International Protection process.