Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan has stood by the recent reforms to Ireland’s migration framework, dismissing claims that the stricter measures unfairly target those seeking asylum, reports RTE.
The measures, unveiled yesterday, will also impact individuals currently living in Ireland on work permits and those applying for family reunification.
They introduce a mandatory five-year residency period for recognised refugees before they become eligible to apply for citizenship, reports RTE.
Applicants who are employed will receive priority processing for full citizenship, while stricter waiting periods will apply before additional family members can join them here, reports RTE.
Mr O’Callaghan told RTÉ’s Today with David McCullagh that the citizenship change “applies to everyone, whether they’ve obtained residency in Ireland through an asylum application, or indeed, if they’re working here on work permits”.
He explained that the new rules additionally cover individuals who arrived under temporary protection schemes, which differ significantly from the formal International Protection procedure, reports RTE.
The Government highlighted that Ireland’s population is growing by 1.5% annually – seven times faster than the EU average – and stressed that migration policy must reflect this exceptional increase.
Mr O’Callaghan noted that although asylum seekers do not represent the majority of arrivals, they still form a substantial share.
“It would be a denial of reality if I was to say that people seeking asylum isn’t a more complicated and contentious issue, that other people can come here. But I suppose if people are coming in here claiming asylum, we have obligations. We have to provide accommodation. That means me getting centers around the country where they can be accommodated. Secondly, we have to put in place a processing system and an appeal system that is very complicated and thirdly, like in terms of visas, I can control that, because I assess people in advance before they come in. When it comes to people claiming asylum, as they’re entitled to, they can just arrive and claim asylum. So it’s a less controlled aspect of the immigration,” reports RTE.
Mr O’Callaghan insisted the revised family reunification requirements are reasonable, pointing out that he cannot overlook Ireland’s status as one of the only European nations that currently does not demand evidence of housing before entry.
“You have to be able to establish that you have suitable accommodation for the person you’re asking to bring into Ireland. I think that’s perfectly reasonable, reports RTE.
“People make decisions to come to Ireland for work, to work for a variety of reasons, and the main reason, I suspect, is because there’s employment opportunities here, That’s the driving motivator. We’re not closing it off. We’re changing it, and we’re entitled to change it,” he said, reports RTE.
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“Maybe you think it’s unfair on the person who’s applying for reunification, but I also have to take into account the interests of the Irish public in terms of the cost of bringing people into the State,” reports RTE.
Mr O’Callaghan further defended the quality of accommodation provided by the International Protection Accommodation Service, stating it exceeds standards found in most other European countries.
On the suggestion that applicants should contribute financially to their housing costs, he remarked: “If you’re an applicant and you’re working, and very many people who are International Protection applicants are working, it’s only reasonable that you make a small contribution towards your accommodation costs”, reports RTE.
Mr O’Callaghan acknowledged that immigration is not the area of his portfolio he wishes to discuss most, yet recognised that he holds the tools needed to influence incoming numbers.
A refugee and migrant advocacy organisation has warned that the planned legislative amendments will further complicate life for some of society’s most vulnerable residents.
Doras, an independent non-profit NGO, labelled the reforms “unnecessary”.
“They’ll make it a lot more difficult for International Protection applicants who get their refugee status to get on with their lives, to integrate into Irish society,” Chief Executive John Lannon told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, reports RTE.
“The Government is essentially making it more difficult for people who escaped war and persecution to do that, to settle in Ireland. The measures proposed will do nothing to end those wars or the persecution or to reduce the need for people to come here to seek protection,” reports RTE.
“If you look at the proposed accommodation charges, they’re going to push people who are already struggling to get by deeper into poverty. We have to bear in mind that the vast majority are already living in substandard, unregulated accommodation. Hundreds are living in cold, damp tents right now,” reports RTE.
“Many are in part-time precarious jobs, they’re supporting their families on very limited income, they have to rely on public transport systems, no place for the children to play or do homework, no social networks or families to rely on, so childcare is costly and impossible to come by in some cases,” reports RTE.
Mr Lannon warned that requiring contributions toward accommodation would only worsen an already dire situation.
They should be granted “the same supports that everyone else gets,” he said, reports RTE.
“There are over 9,500 children in IPAS (International Protection Accommodation Service) accommodation right now, that’s nearly a third of the total population, who do not receive Child Benefit.
“They are the only cohort of children in the country who do not get that support every week.”
Mr Lannon added that the individuals his organisation assists feel utterly confused by the suggested alterations to family reunification and citizenship pathways, reports RTE.
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