Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Question 239: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform, further to Parliamentary Question No. 891 of 29 September 2010, to outline in detail the implications for the common travel area in the event of Ireland opting into Directive 2009/52/EC. [35178/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Directive 2009/52/EC provides for minimum standards on sanctions and measures against employers of illegally staying third country nationals. The Directive is targeted at the illegal employment of third country nationals in order to counteract illegal immigration. It provides minimum standards on sanctions and measures, including disqualification from public benefits, and, in serious cases, criminal penalties against employers of illegally staying third country nationals. Neither Ireland nor the UK has opted into this measure to date.

As the Deputy will be aware, there are some aspects of the Directive that create difficulties in terms of enforceability of contracts, as referred to in my reply to Parliamentary Question No 891 of 29 September 2010. As regards the impact on the Common Travel Area, it is generally desirable that the immigration regime in Ireland is not significantly out of alignment with that of the UK. This is due in particular to the ease of movement between the two jurisdictions. A decision to unilaterally opt-into an EU proposal that the UK has not opted into would tie Ireland to a common legislative framework with other European Member States but not with the UK. As such, this would reduce the flexibility of Government to adjust its immigration system when necessary in response to trends in the UK in the area of illegal migration. There is also a potential displacement risk where illegal workers find Ireland to be a more attractive location than the UK. The question of opting into the Directive will however be kept under review.