David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Senator Kelleher spoke so well, I believed I had a right to respond, but obviously I was mistaken. The Report on Immigration, Asylum and the Refugee Crisis produced by the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice and Equality last year did not recommend widening the scope of the definition of "member of the family" in sections 56 and 57 of the International Protection Act nor the removal of the 12 month time limit for a sponsor to make an application for a family member to enter and reside in the State. I was Chair of that committee for quite a bit. Its reports are well researched and need to be taken seriously.

The report in question recommended that the Government introduce a humanitarian admissions programme for beneficiaries of international protection with family members living in conflict zones. In response, the Minister, Deputy Flanagan, and I announced last November the establishment of a family reunification humanitarian admissions programme, FRHAP. Since then, the Department of Justice and Equality has been working closely with UNHCR Ireland to refine the programme's operational details. I am pleased to say that these have been finalised and the first call for applications under the scheme will open in April. We are doing a great deal of what Senators want virtually straight away. Two further calls will be made this year, with an expected four open calls in total in 2019. Every quarter, a call will be open for four weeks. As we announced in November, the intention is to provide for the reunification of more than 500 vulnerable family members over the next two years. This is in addition to the 600 programme refugees whom we have agreed to resettle this year and a further 600 resettlement places that we have pledged for next year. In case there is a feeling out there that we are not doing anything and nothing is happening, this is what is happening.

The FRHAP is being limited to conflict zones for a reason. We listened carefully when, in recent debates, Senators strongly cited conflict zones from which people were fleeing. Otherwise, this Bill would have prioritised regular applicants, such as people from Georgia and Albania, ahead of Syrians. We got the hint from colleagues in the House that they wanted to prioritise the most impacted people from conflict zones. That is what we are trying to do.

The measures in the International Protection Act are more broadly based than in many European countries. For example, Germany does not give family reunification to those granted subsidiary protection as we do. We constantly want to improve what we have and do better. The Refugee Act was discretionary, whereas the proposal in this Bill is mandatory. Rather than mirroring the provision, it introduces a concept that did not previously exist. This is another important point.

I thank colleagues for the work they have done on this Bill and for holding this debate. It is an important issue, but there are other considerations and unintended consequences could flow from passing this. If colleagues have other ideas and suggestions, want to introduce legislation and want to sit down with departmental officials to get an insight into the impact of, for example, the unintended consequences, I am happy to arrange for that and to be helpful, but we should not divide on this matter. It should not be a political issue. The Minister and I want to do the best we can to support the most vulnerable people out there. After we have introduced the FRHAP in April, I will invite colleagues to tell us how it is working. We are working with UNHCR Ireland on it. It is an ambitious and important programme, and it will make a major difference. The Minister's discretion is still maintained because discretion is important and we do not want to remove it under any circumstance.

I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach and colleagues for their attention.