Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Like Deputy Sean Fleming I oppose both motions. However, I wish to zero in on what I believe to be the most troubling development in respect of the motions, that is, the Minister's proposal to change the effective date of FOI for the Refugee Applications Commissioner and the Refugee Appeals Tribunal from April 2008 to October 2014, which is six months ago. The Minister wants to create a scenario in which third parties can only access data information and documents from the Refugee Applications Commissioner and the Refugee Appeals Tribunal up to six months ago.

It is farcical - the Minister has not set it out here - but in the briefing document to which Deputy Sean Fleming referred and which was circulated to us the request was made by the line Department, the Department of Justice and Equality, not by the agencies, on the very spurious grounds that it had concerns around third party access to personal data. That is rubbish: that was never going to happen. People's personal information is protected. The other concern was that third party FOIs might delay judicial reviews of the organisation's decision making and give rise to significant additional costs in direct provision.

We have in this jurisdiction an absolutely disgraceful regime for dealing with refugees and asylum seekers. Not only is it disgraceful in its shape and resourcing and incredibly slow, it is above all shrouded in secrecy. The Minister and I know that one of the big criticisms of the current Ombudsman and the previous Ombudsman was that they did not have oversight of this whole area of policy and decision making. There are people who have languished in direct provision for many years and have raised their children in direct provision. Children have been injured and damaged in direct provision because they do not have the basic facilities that any child needs and deserves. We know this because at this stage it is very well document and because many of the citizens living in direct provision have taken the trouble to come to the Oireachtas to tell their personal stories. The Minister with responsibility for freedom of information thinks it appropriate to add to the shrouded secrecy around this scandalous area of policy.

The Minister knows that within the system of direct provision and within the entire system of asylum in the State a scandal has slowly and painfully unfolded under our watchful eyes. We know that the system is banjaxed. We know the system is failing those who are engaged with it. We know all of that and we know that it is all terribly secretive and rather than shine a light on this area the Minister wants to maintain that secrecy. I do not buy the rationale forwarded to him by the Department of Justice and Equality for making this change. I doubt that the Minister buys it as I would credit him with more basic intelligence than that. The question then arises, what is there to be hidden?

Individuals can access their personal records and data, one would expect that, but why cannot third parties such as advocates, politicians, perhaps, journalists, analysts and so on have access to this documentation and data-----

See this speech in context