3.—(1) The Minister may appoint such and so many persons as he or she considers appropriate (referred to in this Act as “immigration officers”) to perform the functions conferred on immigration officers by this Act and every person so appointed shall hold office on such terms and conditions as may be determined by the Minister at the time of the appointment.

(2) The Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Health and Children, appoint such and so many registered medical practitioners (referred to in this Act as “medical inspectors”) as he or she considers appropriate to perform the functions conferred on medical inspectors by this Act and every person so appointed shall hold office on such terms and conditions as may be determined by the Minister (with the consent of the Minister for Health and Children) at the time of the appointment.

(3) An immigration officer or a medical inspector appointed under this Act shall have power to enter or board any vessel, and to detain and examine any person arriving at or leaving any port in the State who is reasonably believed by the officer or inspector to be a non-national, and to require the production of a passport or other equivalent identity document by such person, and shall have such other powers and duties as are conferred upon him or her by this Act.

(4) A person appointed by the Minister to be an immigration officer before the commencement of this Act and who was acting as such an officer immediately before such commencement shall upon such commencement be deemed to have been appointed as an immigration officer under this section.

(5) A reference in any Act passed before the commencement of this section or in any instrument made under such an Act to an immigration officer shall be construed as a reference to an immigration officer appointed under this section and, accordingly, a function standing vested in an immigration officer immediately before such commencement under a provision of such an Act or instrument that continues in force after such commencement shall, upon such commencement, stand vested in, and may be performed by, such an officer.

(6) The Minister may revoke an appointment made or deemed to have been made under this section.

F7[(7) The terms and conditions referred to in subsection (1) may include terms and conditions relating to the period for which a person appointed under this section shall hold office.

(8) An immigration officer appointed under subsection (1) shall be furnished with a warrant of appointment and shall, when performing any function conferred on him or her by this Act, if requested by a person affected, produce the warrant of appointment or a copy of it to that person.]