Govt seeking tenders for charter flights to deport people

The Government is seeking tenders for charter flights to deport people who no longer have permission to remain in the State.

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee made the announcement and said that charter flights are more appropriate when a group of people are being removed to the same destination.

Ms McEntee said this will increase the options available to An Garda Síochána to deport more people.

Companies interested in providing the service have until Wednesday 17 July to submit proposals with the flights expected to commence before the end of the year.

Those providing the service will also need to have ground support in place along with catering and, when required, medical assistance for passengers.

The Minister said there has been a major increase in the number of decisions on International Protection cases and it is now time to increase capacity to remove people from the State whose applications have been refused.

“Providing access to charter flights will be a useful additional operational and enforcement resource for An Garda Síochána when the use of commercial carriers is not appropriate,” she said.

“With a major increase in the number of decisions issuing on International Protection cases it is now time to increase our capacity to remove people from the State whose applications have been refused and who do not have permission to remain in the State.

“A charter service will increase our options in this regard,” Ms McEntee said.

According to the department, there have been 860 deportation orders signed this year with over 295 people departing from the State.

The number of people availing of voluntary returns has also doubled compared to last year’s figures, increasing by 97 to 227.