Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

There is a belief that whatever improvements we make, whether we make the system more humane, treat people with dignity, aspire to have a system that we can be proud of, somehow flares will be set off and people will come here who would not have done otherwise. There is more movement of people across Europe now than since the end of the Second World War so naturally statistics will reflect the change. There has been an increase in the number of asylum applications in Ireland but that number has been collapsing for the past ten to 12 years. The number has decreased, from a figure of around 10,000 down to around 800 over the past number of years. If there has been an increase then it is a reflection of what is happening across the European Union.

I am loth to discuss many of the issues raised here because I want to give the working group the independence to deal with them collectively and make recommendations to Government. We will deal with them as a collective set of recommendations. I think the group can be radical and find solutions. When the working group finalises its deliberations and makes recommendations we will find a way to implement workable and sustainable solutions that will make the current system work an awful lot better.

As regards the Government's commitment to this issue, the statement of priorities of both Government parties was signed off on last summer and it included reform of the direct provision system. A commitment was made that a protection Bill would be brought before the Oireachtas and that will happen this month. In addition, a working group has been established. I wanted to see the full report done by Easter. There is an expectation that there may be an interim report as well. In fairness, however, rather than asking the working group to spend time on an interim report, it is reasonable to wait a number of months for the full report.

I feel keenly about our responsibilities as a society. I spend half my time in the Department of Justice and Equality and the other half in the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. I also spend a lot of time on commemorations, which affects my mindset on this. When we talk about the 1916 Rising, the Proclamation and the centenary in 2016, in addition to rights, responsibilities and opportunities for all our citizens, that was aspirational 100 years ago. We also talk about the precious nature of childhood, treating people with dignity and true republican values. When we see the names of the seven people who signed the Proclamation, two of them were not born in Ireland. Another two of them were sons of migrants to this country.

Through this working group and the generosity of the political system, we have an opportunity to break down much of the cynicism that people have about Irish politics. Members of this House consistently raise an issue that they know is wrong, but I am not sure if their clinics are full of people who are necessarily raising the matter or if their e-mail accounts are full of people raising it either. However, they are raising it on a cross-party basis because they want to see changes. That is when our political system works best.

I want to come back and engage with this House as often as I possibly can. I appreciate the opportunity to do so. I commend Senators' commitment to this issue. When the legislation comes through, it should be thoroughly scrutinised. When the working group's report is debated in the House, let us work collectively to ensure it can be implemented. When the five years of this Oireachtas are over, we will be able to say that is one good, solid piece of work that we achieved collectively.