Professor Siobhán Mullally:

Transposition of the directive gives an opportunity for minimum standards to be put in place and a more open and public debate around reception conditions. The Supreme Court judgment is limited in that it struck down the absolute prohibition on the right to work. It does not address, more broadly, questions around integration, inclusion, combatting discrimination in workplace access to education. It is a much broader debate that needs to take place with regard to reception conditions and moving beyond the limits of the current direct provision system but also the barriers in access to education that impact not only asylum seekers but recognised refugees because of requirements like habitual residence. There is a much broader debate that has to take place and the Supreme Court judgment is just a starting point but it is an important one. Opting into the Reception Conditions Directive will open up the possibility of more public engagement and political debate on broader questions around reception.