No Passport, No Backround Check, No Problem, Welcome To Ireland. Episode 830

Niall speaks to Irish Daily Mail journalist Ken Murray about the newspaper’s front page revelation that more than 16,000 people arrived at Dublin Airport without passports or valid travel documents between 2020 and 2025.

Figures obtained from the Department of Justice show that 16,307 undocumented passengers arrived during that period, with a record 4,968 arriving in 2022 alone. The total does not include arrivals at Cork, Shannon or Knock airports, meaning the true nationwide figure could be considerably higher.

How are passengers boarding international flights with passports, only to arrive in Ireland without them? Are documents being deliberately destroyed during flights to conceal identities, nationalities or travel routes? Why has the Government not required airlines to retain secure copies of passengers’ documents before departure?

Niall and Ken also examine Ireland’s failure to enforce deportation orders. Between 2020 and 2025, 9,142 orders were signed, but only 969 deportations were carried out. Does the State know how many of those ordered to leave remain in Ireland, and why is there such an enormous gap between issuing an order and enforcing it?

Has Ireland become a soft touch with what is effectively an open border crisis? Can the Government regain control of the immigration system, or will the financial cost, political division and social unrest continue to grow?