There will be no mass response to the Supreme Court ruling on the rights of non-national parents of Irish-born children, according to the Minister for Justice.
Mr McDowell told journalists yesterday that there would neither be mass deportations nor an amnesty for those already here, arising out of the judgment.
Last week, the Supreme Court ruled by a five-two majority that non-national parents of Irish-born children did not have an automatic right to residence in Ireland.
This followed a case taken by a Czech man and a Nigerian man who each had a child born here.
Before the judgment the legal situation was governed by an earlier case, where the Supreme Court had held that Irish children were entitled to the care and society of their parents, and that non-national parents could only be deported for compelling reasons, in defence of the common good.
Until last week, the fact of being illegally in the country was not held to be a sufficiently compelling reason for such deportations.
Mr McDowell said he would bring the preliminary assessment of the judgment from his officials to the Cabinet next Tuesday, and would brief the Cabinet verbally on the issue tomorrow.