Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)

Both I and the Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, very much welcome the opportunity to discuss in Dáil Éireann the processing and enforcement of international protection. It is important to emphasise what, in fact, is meant by "international protection". It is sometimes confused with other areas of immigration. "International protection" is the term that we use to describe those people who come to countries such as Ireland, or indeed any other country, because they say that they are fleeing persecution or war. It derives from the 1951 Geneva Convention, which was put in place in the aftermath of the Second World War when we saw very many examples of people being persecuted in countries or having to flee war because of events outside their control. When we talk about international protection, we are talking about the term that is used for the purpose of describing individuals fleeing war and persecution.

The term "international protection" became common in usage within the European Union. For the purpose of trying to identify what are the laws in Ireland governing international protection, I refer people to the International Protection Act 2015. As Members will be aware, that legislation, in effect, transposes into Irish law the directives and regulations in respect of international protection that were agreed to and introduced by the European Union. It is important at the outset that we understand by "international protection".

The reason I wanted to make that opening comment is international protection is only an element, a proportion, of immigration into Ireland. We need to put the numbers of people coming in and claiming asylum into the context of the general figures for immigration in Ireland. In doing that, and in forming that context, I always go back to the population of the island that existed 185 years ago in 1840. The population of Ireland before the Famine was 8 million. The devastation of the Famine is evident from the fact that today on the island of Ireland we have not yet got back to those figures.

What we have noticed in recent years, and this is particularly aligned with our economic success and the attractiveness of Ireland as a country, is that immigration has increased significantly. If I had to choose between the population of Ireland going up or down, I would favour the former. We saw what happened for many years when the population was declining and it can destroy a country.

On immigration generally, I would like to put on the record some of the statistics in respect of the numbers of people who came into Ireland so we can assess the numbers of people coming in and claiming international protection. The Central Statistics Office, CSO, produces finely tuned statistics on the matter. For the year ending April 2024, the CSO recently recorded that 149,200 people immigrated into Ireland. Of those, 30,000 were returning Irish citizens, 27,000 were other EU citizens, 5,400 were UK citizens and approximately 86,800 were citizens of other countries, including Ukraine. I will return to that issue presently. Those were the numbers who came into Ireland. Of course, people leave each year. Approximately 70,000 people left Ireland in the year ending April 2024. Those consisted of 34,700 Irish citizens, 10,600 other EU citizens, 3,000 UK citizens and 21,500 other citizens, including Ukrainians.

It is important to set out those figures for the numbers coming to and leaving Ireland before we come to assess and appraise the figures in respect of international protection. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the number of people coming into Ireland were approximately 3,000 to 4,000 each year. The numbers obviously dropped significantly in 2020 and 2021 because of the travel ban and the impact of Covid restrictions. I think 1,500 and 2,500, respectively, came into Ireland in 2020 and 2021. There was then a significant increase in the numbers coming in in 2022 and 2023. In fact, in each of those years 13,500 people arrived to Ireland claiming international protection. In 2024, 18,500 people arrived to Ireland claiming international protection. During 2022, 2023 and 2024, in the region of 44,000 or 45,000 people came into Ireland and claimed international protection.

At the same time, we were also providing temporary protection to people who were fleeing the war in Ukraine. I will not go into the details of the distinction between temporary protection and international protection but obviously it is known that when it comes to temporary protection, people similarly are entitled to come here for that purpose. A significant number of people came into Ireland claiming either international protection or permanent protection on the basis of what was happening in Ukraine and, indeed, what was happening internationally.

I just wanted to set those statistics in context because it is important that we do not allow the discussion about international protection to be viewed solely as the cause of immigration in Ireland or as what it is being generated by; it is not. There is a whole variety of other reasons people are coming into Ireland. Most of them are coming in to work. The Minister of State has responsibility for the visa systems. Last year, we issued approximately 150,000 visas for people to come to Ireland, many of them to work. Many of them come for holidays and the short term. It is important that we understand and get a sense of the proportion of people coming here to seek international protection in the context of general immigration.

What does, however, distinguish international protection applications from other individuals who are coming to Ireland on a work or holiday visa is that in the context of international protection, we have obligations to fulfil. The two most prominent obligations are to provide a place of accommodation for people who come here claiming international protection and to process their applications. The reason we have to do that is that it is not the case that simply because somebody claims to be entitled to international protection, they are so entitled. Every country in the European Union and the world has a system in place for the purpose of appraising and assessing those applications to determine whether they are valid or should be rejected. In each European Union country, there is an obligation to provide an appeal mechanism. People who are rejected at first instance must be given the capacity for appeal. Unquestionably, what puts tension and pressure on the Irish system of governance is the fact that we must provide accommodation. When, prior to Covid, we were processing 2,000, 3,000 or 4,000 applications per year, we are able to do so. In fact, the criticism at the time was that direct provision centres were not suitable enough and needed to be improved, and unquestionably they did. That was the political argument at that stage. In 2022, 2023 and 2024, because of the numbers arriving in, there was a crisis in the system. That is unquestionably the case and neither I or the Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, would have any hesitancy in saying that the surge in numbers created a crisis. It was extremely difficult to provide accommodation for every person. In fact, in truth, we were not able to provide accommodation for everyone. That is the important architecture in understanding the system of international protection.

I also want to say something at this stage, in parenthesis if I can, about events that have taken place over the past two weeks. We have seen some reprehensible acts over the past two weeks. I mention them not just for the purpose of condemnation but also for the purpose of communicating a message. We saw approximately two weeks ago an allegation of serious sexual assault against a child being made against a person who had applied for international protection and had been refused but was still being accommodated within an International Protection Accommodation Services, IPAS, centre. We then saw serious acts of violence and rioting committed against members of An Garda Síochána and attempts were made to attack and cause damage to the centre in Citywest. Last weekend, we saw the reprehensible act of an individual trying to set a building on fire in the knowledge that there were people in that building. Let us be honest about it: that was an attempted murder if ever I saw one, in terms of the consequences of a fire going up on that stairwell.

I refer to those three reprehensible acts because it is extremely important that in this House we do not allow that extreme behaviour or the criminal acts of others to dictate our policy when it comes to international protection. I know all of us in this House will be outraged by the acts I have recounted. I urge people to ensure we do not allow extremists and people involved in criminal activity to dictate and mould how we will respond in terms of policy to the issues raised in respect of international protection. It is important not only that we condemn those acts but also that we do not permit the individuals who were behind perpetrating them to have any belief that their actions will mould or change our behaviour.

In terms of the processing of international protection applications, it is obviously the case that if 18,500 people come to Ireland claiming international protection, as was the case last year, it will be a very significant job to process those applications. That processing is done by my Department through the International Protection Office, IPO. Each individual who comes to Ireland and claims asylum, or international protection as it is more formally called, will have an interview in the IPO. Their account will be appraised by an officer and a determination will be made in respect of it. My predecessor started the process of improving the numbers within the IPO and I commend her on doing so. There were 143 IPO staff in 2019 and I am pleased to say that today there are 620, which is an increase of 334%. It is extremely important for people who come and make an application for international protection to have their applications dealt with promptly. It is fairer for them to have their applications dealt with promptly and it is fairer for the Irish system as well. We have seen an increase in the number of staff at the IPO, but we also seen an increase in the use of ICT and technology. It is now a paperless office. The Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, and I have visited the IPO and we have seen that it is run extremely efficiently. We can see the benefit of further investment in the IPO in the numbers of decisions it is making each year. Last year it delivered 14,000 first decisions, compared with 8,500 in 2023. Already this year we have seen 16,600 decisions. I am confident that by the end of this year we will see the IPO produce 20,000 decisions. This is achieving the policy objective that the Minister of State and I have set. We want to see applications determined more quickly and efficiently.

Later this year or early next year I will bring a new international protection Bill before the House. It will seek to put in place a requirement, imposed on me, on my office and on the appeals process, that we determine applications within a period of 12 weeks. That is something people may think cannot be achieved but I am pleased to tell this House that since July of this year we have been running a pilot project within the IPO and the International Protection Appeals Tribunal, IPAT, which has been assessing applications from three countries - Georgia, Brazil and India - to see whether we can fulfil our time obligations that will kick in during June of next year. I am pleased to say that pilot has been successful. We have seen over 300 decisions from applicants from those countries which have gone through first stage, the appeals stage, and in many instances deportation orders signed, within a period of 12 weeks. Let us be clear that the policy objective of the Government is to ensure that by the middle of June 2026, applications for international protection made after that date will be processed extremely quickly; within 12 weeks, including the appeals process. I think that is a fair system. I know others in the House may think it is unfair to process applications with such speed but I disagree. My view, and the policy I am seeking to set out, is that it is fairer on everyone concerned if we can get a determination in respect of applications promptly and within the 12-week period.

A person who brings an application before the IPO has an entitlement to appeal a decision to IPAT. At the end of 2024 there were 9,700 appeals pending; as of now there are nearly 17,000 appeals pending. We are getting through the appeals faster this year than last year. The number of appeals pending is increasing because of the number of people who arrived during the previous three years. I also recently announced that Ireland has signed an operational plan with the European Agency for Asylum, EUAA. I know this will provide us with great support. Under the agreement, up to 30 new personnel from that association will assist us in our supports. That is about the processing of international protection applications.

I cannot ignore the fact that approximately 81% of applications are rejected at first instance. Approximately 70% to 76% of those refusals are appealed but even on appeal, only 25% to 30% of appeals are granted. I cannot shy away from the fact that the majority of people who apply for international protection are refused. I know some people in this House do not want to say that and they do not have to say that. I am not requiring them to do so. As Minister for justice, along with the Minister of State with responsibility for migration, Deputy Brophy, I cannot shy away from that. We would be remiss in our duties if we were to do so. When that happens, the question that must arise is what happens to people who have gone through the system and have been told they are not entitled to international protection. What should happen to them? The remedy is that we serve them with deportation orders. If it were the case that everyone who applies can stay, regardless of whether they are successful or unsuccessful, we would not be able to cope with the numbers who would come to Ireland. I want to be frank about what would happen if we were to adopt such a policy.

I think everyone in this House realises that there has to be a consequence when somebody is refused international protection. There is a consequence under the policy we are operating. Already this year, I have issued nearly 4,000 deportation orders and approximately 1,700 people have been removed from Ireland through voluntary returns, enforced deportations, deportations on charter flights or deportations on commercial flights. It is not something from which the Minister of State or I derive pleasure, but we would be neglecting our very serious responsibilities if we did not seek to do it. Voluntary return is the mechanism we prefer to ensure people will accept an assisted offer to go back. The message has to be delivered fairly unambiguously that if people apply for international protection, are refused and are served with a deportation order, they must leave the country. Already this year, up to 31 October, I have signed 3,877 deportation orders and 1,770 people have had their departures confirmed through these pathways.

Deputies will ask how it can happen that somebody with a deportation order can still be in the country. I think Deputy McDonald raised this issue in respect of the suspect who was arrested following the alleged sexual assault in Citywest. When a deportation order is issued, it gives a person a certain period of time to leave the country. There are mechanisms whereby he or she can seek to appeal that order, and there are mechanisms that can have an impact in delaying giving effect to the deportation order. On many occasions it is to the advantage of the Department and me to have people who have deportation orders present in an international protection accommodation centre. We know they are there. Recent charter flights I have directed have been assisted by the fact we knew where the people with the deportation orders were. They were in an international protection accommodation services, IPAS, centre and we could remove them because of that. I do not profess to say that this is an easy issue; it is not. It is complex. The Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, and I are seeking to say that there is a rules-based system and if people comply with the rules, they will be satisfactorily responded to by Ireland.

See this speech in context