Dáil debates

Thursday, 22 April 2021

Direct Provision: Statements

 

10:50 am

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Managing migration from failed states and climate disruption and displacement will be an enduring challenge and it is likely to get considerably worse before it begins to get better. We in politics who aspire to the values of humane systems must steer a very difficult course between the harrowing stories and how we accommodate them. There has been a rise in parties that use migration to seek to undermine those very values we espouse. Systems have become overwhelmed, as we have seen in other countries, and we must find a way of co-operating across member states and supporting institutional improvement in many of the states to support the sort of response to the climate challenge that is necessary to bring long-term balance to this.

I commend Dr. Catherine Day on her work. One element that stuck out was the need to end silo thinking if we are to address this matter. Reading the White Paper, I wonder if the Minister has that level of commitment across government. I fear that what is put in place for implementation will fall short in this respect and this needs very high-level commitment from the centre of the Government and from the Cabinet down. Will the Minister be able to stand over that?

I really welcome phases 1 and 2 and the move to income support in phase 2, the opportunity to work and access to the sort of services that the previous Deputy referred to. Phase 1 is built on the expectation that we can turn around 3,500 places in 12 months and there would be four months in phase 1. That would be roughly 1,200 places. The reality is we now have six times that figure and at our peak we had ten times that figure. Of people in direct provision, 50% are more than one year in the system. We need to have assurance the speed of decision-making will change dramatically. Dr. Day's report indicates that in non-urgent cases, it takes 40 months to even get to the end of an appeal process. That is more than three years, after which there is review and judicial review. Could we have an assurance that we will get down to the 12-month target that has been set?

We have less than half the rate of refugee applications of the EU and we must consider our capacity to deal with surges that may arise. That has happened and overwhelmed systems, resulting in the sort of political backlash that could be so damaging to the process. I commend the Minister on his work but I hope he can end silo thinking and, most crucially, get a quick decision-making process in place.

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