More than half of the asylum seekers staying at a contentious emergency accommodation site in Athlone are expected to inform the government by next week whether they’ve accepted new housing arrangements offered to them, reports Breaking News.
During a High Court session on Monday, senior counsel Aoife Carroll, representing the State, told Ms Justice Emily Farrell that 70 of the 125 remaining residents at the accommodation centre had received offers for alternative places to stay, and their decisions should be known by next week.
Last month, Ms Carroll told the court that 137 individuals were living at the emergency site, but that the number was decreasing as efforts were made to relocate residents elsewhere, reports Breaking News.
The legal proceedings were initiated by Independent Ireland councillor Paul Hogan, who represents the Athlone-Moate District.
He was granted a judicial review by the court in December, claiming that the fast-tracked development of the site was unlawful. The government has since acknowledged that the Statutory Instrument used to speed up construction was “invalid” and is working to amend the legislation, reports Breaking News.
A Statutory Instrument refers to a form of secondary legislation made by a government minister, allowing for modifications or additions to existing legal frameworks.
Cllr Hogan has brought the case against the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, reports Breaking News.
He argued that the Minister did not properly evaluate the project’s environmental effects and lacked the necessary expertise to conduct such assessments within the accelerated timeframe.
Public demonstrations have taken place in Athlone opposing plans to expand army-style tent accommodation to potentially house up to 1,000 asylum seekers, reports Breaking News.
Last month, Ms Justice Farrell stated she would hold off on delivering judgment to annul the Statutory Instrument used to set up the Lissywollen emergency site in Athlone, Co Westmeath.
She said she was awaiting further updates and the draft legislation expected from the Oireachtas. The government had indicated it planned to resolve the legal issue related to avoiding environmental impact assessments during the site’s development, reports Breaking News.
On Monday, Ms Carroll said the department continued to try reducing the number of residents at the facility, but there was “significant pressure” on the overall system.
Speaking about the legislative fix, Ms Carroll acknowledged that “we have not made the progress hoped,” reports Breaking News.
She said “significant work” had been undertaken on a general outline of the proposal, and that the aim was to send it for drafting to prepare a new law.
Ms Carroll again requested that the court not issue final orders at this stage and to allow the current arrangement to remain until the legislation, which the government hopes to introduce to the Dáil in November, is ready, reports Breaking News.
Ms Justice Farrell adjourned the matter to next week, but cautioned that she could not continue delaying final rulings when the government had had “ample opportunity” to present legislation to the Dáil.
David O’Brien BL, representing Cllr Hogan, criticised the government’s repeated use of “loose dates,” calling it a “regrettable motif” throughout the case, reports Breaking News.
He said the November timeline initially mentioned in May had been “unrealistic… now, it is at the point of untenable,” adding that his client had been left “without a modicum of explanation.”
Cllr Hogan contends that the Minister’s handling of the development was “unlawful, irrational and a breach of fair procedures,” reports Breaking News.
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