Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. I would like to commend the Taoiseach's nominees on bringing forward this important motion. It is a fair and balanced motion and seeks clarification and an update.

As we are all well aware, the Government published a report on the protection process on the direct provision system last June and we are very honoured to welcome the chairman of the report group, Dr. Bryan McMahon, to the gallery. This report contained more than 173 recommendations. Any report that contains 173 recommendations clearly identifies that a lot of change needs to be made.

Today's motion deals primarily with children currently living in direct provision centres. While I appreciate that the Government has increased the payment made to children in direct provision from €9.60 to €15.60, it still remains a paltry sum when one takes into account the needs of children. One can only imagine how dreadful it must be to live for years in a shelter, when at the outset that period was meant to be six months. Many remain in direct provision for several years. The needs of the families and, most importantly, of the children of asylum seekers have to be met.

We must look at the right of a child not just to life, but also to life experiences, a concept which is limited not only to direct provision. Children did not choose to be brought to this country, nor indeed to be born into direct provision, but many are. Imagine going to school and never being able to invite your friend back to your home. Imagine never being able to attend a school friend's birthday party because one simply does not have the money to buy even the cheapest of birthday gifts.They are never able to go to see a movie with a friend or partake in any activity that costs money. I acknowledge the working group for its hard work, giving this minority group a voice to express its concerns. Reports by the Immigrant Council of Ireland and the Irish Refugee Council have scrutinised the direct provision system and they found poor living conditions which could be damaging to health and mental health. Ireland is one of two EU countries that does not allow asylees to work. They do not have access to social welfare, rent allowance or social housing. In simple English, they are unable to experience a normal family life which many of us take for granted. I appreciate that asylum seekers are obliged to go through the process and take proper and legal steps to be able to remain in the country. However, the length of time the process takes is frustrating for the asylum seekers and those who represent them and who are fighting for their rights. Senator van Turnhout outlined data on the numbers of people waiting and how long they have been waiting. I have made inquiries and am informed that each month between 60 and 80 residents in direct provision are getting leave to remain. This great but not fast enough for most of them and I hope the process will speed up.

As outlined in the motion by the Senators, Ireland has ratified the optional protocol and a communications procedure of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which allows individual children, including those in direct provision, to submit complaints concerning specific violations of their convention rights. There is, however, no provision to make a complaint to the Ombudsman for Children. It is a very reasonable request that children in direct provision come under the remit of the Ombudsman for Children. Dr. Niall Muldoon, the Ombudsman for Children has welcomed the proposal for the establishment of a committee to set standards for direct provision and an inspectorate to look at direct provision centres to see if the new standards are working. This also gives the children the feeling of inclusion in an agency that would help improve their lives. During its term, the Government has done a lot for the protection of children, such as the Children First legislation and the setting up of Tusla, but we must extend the same rights to children in direct provision. Families should be able to at least try to keep life as normal as possible for children while they await their applications for asylum to be processed. Nobody should have to wait for seven years or more. For some asylum seekers, it has been seven years of totally inadequate facilities in which to rear a family - as has been clearly outlined by other Senators - such as no cooking facilities and meals at the same time every day. Everyone must have the same meal as there is no variety on any given day. There are different nationalities, cultures and religions within each direct provision centre and yet there is no facility to accommodate people with the foods they may need or are used to. Children may have to live in a room with their entire family, possibly with young adults and their parents and share a bathroom with other residents of the centre. With regard to education, children have access to primary and secondary schools but finance becomes an issue. Children may not have funds to partake in such things as school outings or extra-curricular activities. The Minister of State, as a teacher, knows the extra costs for families when it comes to education. It is the little things the children cannot do because they do not have the money. They probably cannot take a swimming lesson or go on outings other children can go on because their parents can afford it.

I acknowledge the work done by the Government to help students to access third level education, if they have been in the country for five years. The students are very limited in what college they can attend as they would not be able to finance themselves through college. Even if they receive the special rate of the SUSI grant, it would only barely cover the accommodation costs, so the students are obliged to stay near the direct provision centre and are limited in what college or course they can take. The Reception and Integration Agency, RIA, is doing its best to ensure all residents' basic needs are met. However, we must go further than that or, as former Supreme Court Mrs. Justice Catherine McGuinness has predicted, one day maybe not in the too distant future, we will have a Taoiseach standing in the Dáil making a public apology for the damage done to people during their time in direct provision. Direct provision could have long-lasting adverse effects on the health and mental health of many residents.

I acknowledge the work done to date by this Government but I urge whatever party is in Government after the next general election to continue the work to ensure anyone in direct provision is treated with dignity and respect and their applications are expedited as quickly as possible. Most of these people have fled their own countries in fear of their lives to avoid poverty, torture and even death. They do not expect Ireland to be the land of milk and honey but they would hope to receive fair and dignified treatment by the authorities and to live in a decent standard of accommodation while their application is being processed.

I will conclude by thanking the Taoiseach's nominees for tabling this motion. It is a good motion and they have always brought forward good motions in this House. They will probably be in the Lower House or in this House again in the future and that they will bring forward good motions again.