Pauline Tully (Sinn Fein)

This discussion is on migration, which covers both immigration and emigration. As a state, Ireland is no stranger to emigration. We have had millions of people leave our shores over the last couple of centuries. Unfortunately, we still have quite a number of young, highly skilled, highly qualified people leaving our shores. They are going to Australia, Dubai and various parts of the globe, some for the experience and to travel the world but many because they cannot afford to live here and they see no prospect of getting on the property ladder. They are going to these countries to work hard enough to get a deposit so that they can buy or build a house when they return home. That is something that needs to be addressed.

Immigration is an issue that is coming up in all our communities when we talk to people on the doorsteps. It suits some to blow it out of proportion as well. When we break down the number of immigrants coming into the country, quite a number are returning Irish emigrants. Some are coming from Britain and the EU, who do not need any visas or permission to come here. Many also come here on work visas. I commend those who come here to work in the health, hospitality, construction and IT sectors because they make a huge contribution to society.

There is also a proportion coming to seek international protection. The international protection system has been in crisis mode for quite some time. Applications are taking far too long to process. While there might be some improvement in the time, it is still taking too long. People who do not meet the threshold for asylum are not being deported. Unfortunately, we need to see people deported if they do not meet the threshold. There is also massive profiteering in the provision of frequently inappropriate private IPAS accommodation. The State must provide State-owned accommodation – proper accommodation for people seeking protection. We also need to see properly resourced integration measures put into our communities, because a lot of it is falling on family resource centres, which are doing a terrific job but they are absolutely over-worked and over-subscribed and they are not getting the resources needed to do this work. We need to put more resources into family resource centres and other services to provide integration. We also need to ensure there are open and transparent discussions with communities on immigration and international protection. It should not be seen as something that is done in secret and behind people's backs.

I want to call out those who are racist and are trying to sow division in communities. The vast majority of Irish people are not racist. Some have very legitimate concerns about the crises that face us in both housing and health. Those crises existed long before the latest influx of immigrants coming into our country, but there are people who seek to blame people coming into the country for the crises. The blame for the crises lies at the door of Governments, which failed to address them for decades. The vast majority of people coming here are also decent people who want to work and improve their living conditions for themselves and their families, just like Irish people did for many generations when they left our shores and went elsewhere.

The Government and the EU need to look more closely at the causes of migration. I do not think enough is being done on this. The causes are mainly war and climate change, yet nothing is being done about the sale of weapons to dictators in various countries where wars are ongoing and people are suffering and have to flee. The climate change occurring in poor countries is not their fault but is because of the colonial powers that controlled them for many generations and took the riches out of them. We really need to deal with the causes of migration if we are going to sort out this problem for the long term.