Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It will be filled by people who want to breed nothing but hatred, contempt, xenophobia and racism, to be honest about it. These are statements about international protection applicants, but we must of course distinguish that there are Irish people in this country who look different. I know I have said this previously in this Chamber, but there are Irish people of ethnic variety who get told that they do not belong here. They are Irish. They are as Irish as the Minister or me, or anybody else in this Chamber. They are born here, their families are here and they live here. Many of them speak Irish, or speak English with Irish accents. They are Irish people, but because they look different they are subjected to racial abuse and taunting. They are subjected to assaults and worse, as we have seen. I hope there is room in the budget and programme of the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to mount the kind of information campaign we saw with Covid. I honestly believe there is a situation now that warrants the same level of urgency. If we do not do it now, and racism gets a toehold in this country, it will be impossible to undo it. At school level, at university level, at community level and in the national media. I hope the Department will find room to mount an extraordinary public information campaign to convince people of the value we derive from people coming from outside and what they contribute, and to dispel the myths propagated by other people.