Ms Sophie Magennis:

I thank the Deputies. As Deputy Mac Lochlainn mentioned, the largest factor in this issue will be the working group report, which will be published on 30 June.

There has been some reporting in the media but the report is not in the public domain yet so I will not go into detail on that. The single protection procedure is the most important element in order to make all the expected recommendations come together and to prevent long stays in the direct provision system in the future. It can be bad on two levels. When somebody who comes into the State has a protection need that does not fit the refugee definition but does fit the subsidiary protection definition, it can take years to get there, so there is a gap during which the person's protection need has not been identified. During that time the person cannot work or access third level education, and he or she is on €19.10 per week and living in an institutionalised setting where there are difficulties with privacy and a lack of catering. We are mindful also of the report of this committee, which was an important contribution to raising awareness of the issues. The real challenge is to come up with a set of solutions to deal with the issues facing long-staying people in the centres and to ensure this does not happen again. The report, which is due next week, will deal with the people in the centres at the moment.

I will now turn to the single protection procedure. This will identify a person in need of protection at the earliest possible point. It will also preserve the asylum space. If a procedure for determining those in need of protection is not in place at national level, then it is difficult to be clear on messaging. It becomes hard to counter the type of sentiment referenced by this committee, because there is a perception that anybody who comes to Ireland is going to be staying forever. People who need protection become mixed up with those who may not need protection. The UNCHR's appeal to all member states is to put measures in place that can quickly identify those in need of protection so that within a period of six months or less their need is identified. People who are refugees or in need of subsidiary protection can get protection status and then move on with their lives. Those who do not meet the criteria in terms of protection needs and who do not have any other humanitarian reason to stay would be assisted - in full dignity and respect for their human rights - in returning to their country of origin, where there is no harm. When there is a system that functions like this, it becomes easier to get the message across.

Our appeal to this committee and to Irish parliamentarians is to advance this legislation as quickly as possible. We are anxious about the fact that only the general scheme of the Bill has been published. My colleague Enda O'Neill has worked on comments, and our views have been submitted to this committee. There is concern that the legislation might not be enacted before another general election is called. The biggest contribution this committee can make towards resolving the situation for the future and for current legacy cases is to expedite the pre-legislative scrutiny and to complete the drafting as quickly as possible in order for the Bill to be enacted. We have confidence that there are solid recommendations from the working group on the protection process report, which we played a key role in. We hope there is a time frame now for this committee to advance the legislation and for the current administration to implement it.