Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator O'Loughlin for raising this extremely important issue.

First, let me stress that I recognise the crucial role all healthcare workers, including those who are non-EEA nationals, continue to play in this ongoing pandemic in responding to the threat of Covid-19. Their exceptional commitment has been particularly clear throughout the pandemic, during which they have in no small way played a part in preventing the spread of Covid-19. First and foremost, I want to acknowledge the significant, vital and important role they continue to play and they no doubt will play in the future, because this is something that will not end today or tomorrow.

I can Senator O'Loughlin that humanitarian factors, employment records and other factors are considered by my officials in the immigration service as part of the permission to remain and leave to remain processes. Each case is examined in detail on its individual merits, taking all factors into account, as I have outlined.

For people who have applied for international protection, our overall objective, whether they be front-line workers or not, is to have this process on their protection applications and permission to remain considerations decided upon as quickly as possible. This ensures those who are in need of our protection, including applicants who are working on the front line who are working in healthcare services and many other parts of the community who are protecting us daily, can receive this response as quickly as possible and begin rebuilding their lives and starting to set out a new life here with a sense of safety and security.

I am committed to making further efficiencies in the international protection process. As Senators will be aware, with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, we launched the White Paper where there are clear commitments given by my Department to reduce processing times of both first instance decisions and appeals to six months in both cases. That in itself will have a huge impact and make a huge difference to those who are currently in the system.

Work is under way in my Department to identify mechanisms which will assist in that overall process, working towards improving those times. Additional ICT resources have been secured for this year. Detailed work, including an end-to-end review of processes to guide enhanced processing times, is also under way.When this first phase of work has been carried out, it will enable a more detailed set of milestones to be put in place.

Regarding the current backlog of international protection cases, my Department intends, in the first instance, to prioritise processing of all cases using improved processes and the planned ICT investment in the system. My Department will, by October 2022 at the latest, commence a review of progress made in reducing and improving processing times and based on the outcome of that review, decide by the end of 2022, whether additional measures are required in order to ensure that the new system can come into operation without the overhang of any significant number of legacy cases. Furthermore, to ensure that people do not fall out of permission during this time, I have provided six automatic extensions of immigration and international protection permissions since last March. The most recent extension is to 20 April, and I expect to announce a further extension shortly, giving people the reassurance they need.

Healthcare workers are also benefiting from the temporary citizenship process that we opened in January. As a result of Covid-19 restrictions, the face-to-face citizenship ceremonies have not happened and a backlog has built up. We put in place a new temporary system and I am pleased to say that we are on track to meet our target of communicating with 4,000 people by the end of this month with a further 2,500 people by the end of June. A significant number of those are working on the front line in the vital services that have been supporting us through the Covid-19 pandemic. They will benefit from this enhanced system. I believe we will be able to clear the backlog by the end of this year as we had targeted to do.