Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

Newstalk reported today that 5,000 asylum seekers arrived in Ireland without valid travel documents last year. That is 40% of the total figure. The reply I received to a recent parliamentary question showed that the annual cost of accommodating an asylum seeker is €18,568. The mean wait time for the application to be processed is a year and a half. Thousands of people are waiting two or three years. One person has been waiting 14 years to have their application processed. It is absolutely incredible. However, the total cost of accommodating people who have arrived with false documentation or without documentation is €141 million per year, which is a high figure.

Most Irish people want to do the right thing. They want to make sure that people who are fleeing war, violence and famine get the help they need but they also want to make sure the system is not abused. What will the Government do to make sure the system is not abused?

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