Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 23:

In page 97, between lines 24 and 25, to insert the following: "(e) the laws regarding international protection in that country are more prohibitive than in Ireland and a person who is claiming asylum does not have the same opportunity to be granted refugee status as they would in Ireland.".

If a country is designated as a safe third country to which a person may be sent, it should not have international protection laws which are more prohibitive than the laws in Ireland and the individual should have an equal chance of receiving protection in that country as he or she would in Ireland. If we are sending someone to a country where he or she will again have to seek protection, I want to ensure we do not send him or her to a country where he or she will have a lesser opportunity of receiving protection.

We have unlimited time. I will conclude my set of amendments shortly. It is important that we ensure Ireland takes this seriously. We have spoken about the EU standards in this regard, which often need to be strengthened and improved. Ireland, as a country that prides itself on human rights, talks about civil rights and took a role at the UN on its international compact on migration, should adhere to the highest standards. I would strike a very cautious note on any suggestion that we need to seek to align ourselves with what may prove to be extremely restrictive laws that may happen in the UK. We have already seen how people who have been resident in the UK for 50 years have lost status and been sent away. We know there have been very restrictive policies. One of the EU's great concerns in its negotiations with the UK has been some of the treatment not only of non-EU country migrants but indeed of EU country migrants and family members. I strike a note of caution regarding any suggestion that we should take guidance from those policies. We ought to bear in mind that in many cases, those policies led to the promotion of Brexit and to people voting in favour of Brexit, which will have very negative consequences for the UK and for us in Ireland.

I ask the Minister to comment on this amendment. This may be a different issue. As we discussed third countries at the beginning of today's engagement, the amendment might not need to be pressed now. I ask her to comment on the idea of trying to ensure an equivalence of standard. That would be very useful. I hope we will be able to engage, as the Minister mentioned, in another way on the third country issue in the future.