Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Many of the questions that were asked relate to AI and how decisions are made. I am glad it is still human to human and am hopeful that we never venture into using any sort of algorithms to speed up the asylum process.

The information may already be out there and I just have not delved into it enough, but what I am interested in is the idea of safety and safe countries. Ireland deems particular countries to be safe. What I would love to know is where that feeds down from? What criteria are used to establish whether a country is safe? Obviously, safety is relative, but we have to get to some sort of determination of what safety is. There might be a lot of people within a country who do not feel that version or understanding of safety applies to them. Consider, for example, the plight of women in countries in which women's rights in the context of safe access to abortion and contraception are being rowed back. Women in some of these countries are facing imprisonment as a result of seeking reproductive care. How moveable is the idea of safety? Is there just one definition that we have not gone back on if it no longer meets the criteria? If we look at Georgia, it is still considered safe but it is not necessarily safe at all, especially in the regions closest to Russia where people are being conscripted to fight for the latter.

I am looking for a bit more understanding as to where the criteria come from and how easy it is to change the narrative as regards what safe is? Do we need to have a different version of safety for certain countries because some countries may be religious, some may be unsafe for members of the LGBT community or women or some may not be safe due to domestic or civil war or whatever? Are we applying the same criterion of safety to all countries and doing a disservice to many countries where people are not safe for various different reasons.

In light of the current climate in Ireland, and staying with this idea of safety, because there is so much pressure, such a negative narrative out there and so much push-back in relation to migrants, is there any threat to decisions that are being made when it comes to those that are deemed to be in safe countries? Do we start to potentially water down what safety is in order that we can make quicker decisions to maybe not give a positive asylum application result to somebody and send that person home because the system is under so much pressure? If the system, the housing situation, and everything else were in a better position, is it not the case that, ideally, we would not send these people home in the circumstances in which they are currently being sent home? Is there is a threat to any of those decisions being made in light of the current climate?