Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)

Ar dtús báire, tááthas orm deis a fháil labhairt ar an mBille seo. Many of us are far more aware of the immigration issue in the past few years. Those of us with a constituency clinic are probably much more educated in the areas of global conflicts, human rights problems, environmental issues and the details and geography of countries such as Nigeria, the Philippines, Cameroon, Eritrea, Romania, Russia, eastern Europe in general and many other parts of the world. The challenge we face has changed from looking for people from all over the world to support our workforce to a situation where we have to cope with the pressure of maintaining so many people who are not able to find paid employment.

It is understandable that we would devote time to find a reasonable but humanitarian way that protects those who are most vulnerable. I hope that we can do that in this debate as clearly and dispassionately as possible, so that we can give the best protection possible for those who are most vulnerable. Many concerns have been raised already about this Bill and about the 2008 Bill, which had to be withdrawn. We are talking about legislation that has been debated and about consolidated legislation going back to 1935, so there is a challenge to get this right.

I met with a number of people outside Tithe an Oireachtais today to discuss this Bill. People feel strongly about many issues, and the issue I would like to talk about is the provision that is described as summary deportation. The UN Refugee Agency has warned that sections of the draft law allow for people who might be in need of protection to be summarily sent to their country of origin without their claim being properly examined. If the United Nations Refugee Agency said that, it behoves us to look long and hard at it. I did not hear the Minister refer to it earlier and perhaps the length of time he had to speak was not sufficient to allow him to go into that detail but I hope he will reflect on those concerns that have also been expressed by groups such as the Immigrant Council of Ireland which is concerned that the introduction of summary deportations could even result in the deportation of vulnerable Irish citizens or lawfully resident migrants who are unable to prove they have a legal right to be in Ireland.

This legislation makes allowances for people in exceptional circumstances in regard to summary deportation where lawfully resident migrants or even vulnerable Irish people could be removed from the country without the right of appeal. It is all very well to say one can go to the High Court but somebody suffering from mental health problems or some other type of deprivation would not be in a position to fully exercise that option. That needs to be taken account of.

We already have a 15 day appeal period, which is not too long. The number of months or years people must wait for decisions on their status would indicate that if there was a chance of a decision within 15 days, it would definitely be welcomed. People in the likes of Mosney find themselves living in limbo.

I hope we can balance the need for us to be careful in how we discharge our responsibilities in the very straitened times in which we live and how we can best manage our resources while at the same time be very careful that we do not visit on people in this country the kind of treatment which would result in us giving out and getting the Department of Foreign Affairs to intervene if it was happening in another country. It is a difficult balance to strike given the pressures on the country.

However, I would listen to the likes of the Migrant Rights Centre which said that the Bill could deny undocumented workers or those in a situation of forced labour access to justice. We have made improvements in that area in that previously somebody was in employment at the pleasure of his or her employer who would hold the work permit and, therefore, have a considerable amount of control over not only the working conditions but the movement of that individual.

I suppose we are limited in the number of people with which we can cope but we must ensure people are not exploited which is the fear of the likes of the Migrant Rights Centre. I hope the Minister and the Department reflect on the 15 day period because we need that small window within which somebody, who has a very good reason to question his or her deportation order, will be allowed the time put his or her case. It will also allow those of us who are in a position to mediate and communicate with the Department to make a case in order that we do not have miscarriages of justices or that it does not result in people being placed in an exploitative situation or being sent back to their own country and being faced with a humanitarian problem we would not have envisaged.

We also need to take account of families. The break up of families is a humanitarian disaster and is a problem for this State - for example, if somebody in a position to maintain a family is deported. When the Minister replies, he might return to that point because it was not raised in his contribution. The 15 day period is minimal and necessary.

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