Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being here in person to address this very pressing issue. The average length of stay of the residents in direct provision centres is 47 months and more than 500 people have been living in direct provision for seven years. I have a number of concerns I would like the Minister to address on this topic which has had considerable discussion on the public airwaves and elsewhere in recent days.

Staff, who were already employed in direct provision centres before the change in legislation, do not have to be Garda vetted despite working with vulnerable adults and children. RIA's child protection policy is too weak and wholly inadequate for a modern democratic State. Direct provision centres are not included in HIQA's remit as parents are present, but this cannot be viewed as a normal parenting environment given that parents have no control over who is present with their children in communal areas, including communal bathrooms. During a committee debate on 12 October 2010, several members of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children called for HIQA inspections to be carried out in direct provision hostels following a visit by members of the committee to a direct provision centre.

Since the Children First guidelines were introduced in 2011, some 171 referrals concerning children in direct provision have been made. Parents are afraid to make complaints, as they do not trust the system or the State where they are located. They essentially have to complain to the Department which is responsible for accommodating them as well as assessing their asylum applications.

Will the Minister introduce a single procedure to decide on protection claims as a matter of urgency to reduce the amount of time people will have to spend in direct provision? Will he ensure that the new legislation complies with various human rights instruments, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which forbids discrimination against children on the basis of the status of their parents? This includes immigration status. What steps will the Minister take to address the serious child protection concerns in direct provision centres?

Has the Minister considered the recommendations by both national and international commentators on reviewing the direct provision system? These include UN reports and the report of the special rapporteur on child protection, Dr. Geoffrey Shannon.

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