Dan Neville (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Let me refer to the impact on society of the refugee camps. When in Jordan, we saw at first hand that there was a city developing at the refugee camp, which contained approximately 120,000 people. They have all the needs of the residents of a city in regard to all aspects of representation, control, policing and crime prevention. Crime can be very much present.

A broader issue arising in Jordan and, I am sure, Lebanon is that highly skilled professional refugees are competing for employment with the local population. This is also causing some stress within communities. People do not understand how such a movement of refugees affects society. When in the region, we were informed that the refugees would be there for at least eight to ten years. They are actually emigrants, not refugees. Parliamentarians told us they had a duty to support the parliament and the government. While we may have an issue with their government, the international community has a responsibility to support it in handling the matter, in addition to supporting the UN Refugee Agency.