The government has come under fire from former Integration Minister Roderic O’Gorman for what he sees as an effort to “minimise” the migrant issue.
From 2020 until 2025, Roderic O’Gorman, the head of the Green Party, was the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth.
During that time, one of his numerous duties was migration. Fine Gael TD Colm Brophy was appointed Minister of State for Migration, marking the creation of a new junior ministry by the government.
His entire position is ‘Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration,’ and he will share responsibility for migration with Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan.
Mr. O’Gorman added that the government program does not adequately provide for accommodations for applicants for international protection.
In an interview with BreakingNews.ie, Mr O’Gorman said: “It struck me as if the Government, by minimising the role, they were going to minimise the problem that migration could cause this government. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that. It’s almost as if nothing has been learned by the last three years when we all know that migration, particularly providing accommodation for those in the international protection system, was such a significant political issue.
Mr. O’Gorman called it “shocking” that the paper made no mention of Ukrainians residing in Ireland.
“Another 30,000 in directly provided State-owned accommodation. That is 65,000 people and no word about them in the programme for government. There is a deadline coming up in March on the recognition payment and the Government has been absolutely silent about what it is going to do about that; is it going to renew it? Is it going to change the rate at which it is being paid?” reports Breaking News.
He added: “On these two issues on international protection accommodation, one line, and on Ukrainians, nothing at all. Again, this effort to not talk about this issue and hope it will go away, well… as the new ministers will soon find, it’s not going anywhere. Every European country is seeing heightened levels of migration now. The level of wars across north Africa, the Middle East, and Ukraine,” reports Breaking News.
He cited several EU nations that had established specialised migration committees.
Plans for a migration agency were part of the Green Party’s manifesto, according to Mr. O’Gorman, “but the Government are, I feel, trying to avoid these difficult questions,” reports Breaking News.
Tent-based asylum seekers were removed from an encampment outside the International Protection Office on Mount Street in Dublin last year.
After erecting obstacles to get them to relocate, the authorities came under fire after many of these individuals pitched up tents along Dublin’s Grand Canal, reports Breaking News.
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