Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

On secondary legislation arising from our obligations under the Amsterdam Treaty's Title IV Article 63, namely, the transposition into Irish law of the qualification directive, which we are required to do by October of this year, I do not expect the Taoiseach to know exactly what the article is. It is a directive that will afford protection in the short term to persons who do not strictly qualify for refugee status here. Since we are required to have legal protection for such individuals by October at the latest, can the sense of that be used to address the issue of the asylum seekers in St. Patrick's Cathedral? Will the Taoiseach join me in asking the people directly affected to desist from their hunger strike in order for the normal processes of the State to listen sympathetically to their case?

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