Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 3:

In page 7, between lines 10 and 11, to insert the following: "Rights and protections of smuggled persons

5.The State shall ensure that all its functions carried out under this Act are in a manner consistent with—

(a) the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, and

(b) the European Convention on Human Rights.".

This amendment relates to the rights and protections of smuggled persons. As noted by my Civil Engagement Group colleague, Senator Black, on Second Stage last week, the Constitution as well as European and international law offers several fundamental protections to everyone who is born on our island or arrives at our shores regardless of his or her migration status. People who have been smuggled are entitled to these rights and they should be clearly stated within this Bill.

This amendment does not look to exceed any standard set by the EU directive, which this legislation is seeking to implement in domestic law; rather it looks to merely meet the standard set by them and explicitly state them within the Bill.

This amendment looks to make explicit the rights afforded to some of the world's most vulnerable people. To make these rights afforded to smuggled people explicit within the Bill would also bring it in line with the Court of Justice of the European Union. In 2014, the court confirmed that personal rights afforded to European citizens and laid out in the European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003 as well as the Charter of Fundamental Rights are also afforded to those people who are smuggled.

I hope the Minister of State can accept this amendment.