Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Tuesday, 30 April 2024
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality
EU Regulations and Directive on International Protection, Asylum and Migration: Discussion (Resumed)
Mr. Nick Henderson:
The one that would stand out would be the asylum and migration management regulation. As I understand it, the initial genesis of that was an attempt to support southern member states, for example, Italy and Greece, who were taking a disproportionate number of people seeking protection. It was an attempt to relieve them of responsibility. That started with good intentions but became increasingly watered down to a point now where member states can pay their way out of responsibility. That initial good intention has been lost to a certain extent. That is also coupled with an update of the existing Dublin regulation and we have concerns with some of the devices that have been established and added to that Dublin regulation. That is the one we would pick that began with good intentions but has been gradually watered down, unfortunately.