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Originally Posted by He3  Our ability to leave the country rests in the gift of the Minister? |
Yes and no: ultimately it's a matter for the courts. There's a constitutional right for all Irish citizens to travel outside the state:
Justice Finlay in the X case:
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The right to travel was identified by me in a judgment delivered when I was President of the High Court in The State (M.) v. The Attorney General [1979] I.R. 73, as an unenumerated constitutional right. That it exists as an important and, in a sense, fundamental right closely identified with the characteristics of any free society, cannot be challenged. The making of an order by way of injunction restraining a person from travelling out of the jurisdiction of the State, whether confirmed to travelling for a particular purpose or for a particular period, constitutes a major restriction of such right to travel, placing the right in actual abeyance.
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However, the Minister can refuse to give someone a passport if the Minister '
decides that in the interest of public order and the common good of the State an applicant should not hold an Irish passport.' Naturally, this decision can be challenged in the courts.