Ministers reject claims of being ‘asleep at the wheel’ on migration

Government ministers have rejected assertions that they were “asleep at the wheel” over sustainably managing migration.

Immigration has emerged as a key issue in the general election campaign ahead of polling day on Friday.

In a debate on RTE’s Upfront focused on the matter, Justice Minister Helen McEntee said immigration is a “good thing for this country” as people come to work and study.

The Fine Gael deputy leader said inward migration is needed to ensure increased housing delivery, essential services in healthcare, and other sectors.

She defended the current immigration system as rules-based.

Aontu leader Peadar Toibin said there was “no doubt” that many migrants make really positive contributions to Ireland.

However, the opposition politician accused the Government of being “asleep at the wheel” by not keeping immigration at what he characterised as sustainable levels.

Mr Toibin said “we have to start looking at” how many permits are provided to non-essential workers.

Integration minister and Green leader Roderic O’Gorman said blocking off links to other countries would be “fundamentally a wrong approach for an open economy” like Ireland.

He accused Mr Toibin of having a “deeply divisive” proposal.

Fianna Fail representative James Browne, who is the junior minister in the Department of Justice, said the country’s economy is “booming” in ICT and foreign direct investment.

He added: “Shutting down effectively any work permit coming for foreign direct investment will be absolutely, I think, counterproductive and, quite frankly, hypocritical as well.”

Michael Fitzmaurice of Independent Ireland said most people have “no problems whatsoever” on people coming in on permits.

However, he said there is a problem around the “complicated permit system”.

Sinn Fein director of elections Matt Carthy said there was an “irony” in doctors and nurses who qualified here having emigrated to the “far side of the globe” over conditions in Ireland.

Mr Carthy said the Government was overseeing crises in housing, health and migration.

“What we want to do is put in place a system of rules that are clearly understood and clearly enforced that ensures that there is confidence for everyone involved.”

The debate also discussed the Government’s response to those seeking asylum and the engagement with communities who host International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) centres.

Mr Carthy said it was “hard to overstate how big of a mess” the Government had made of the accommodation system, adding that communities were extremely frustrated with being “antagonised”.

It is Sinn Fein’s position that IPAS centres should not be put in working class communities and that services should only be located in areas with better ratings on the deprivation index.

Mr Browne said trying to pin down Sinn Fein’s policy of where asylum seekers would actually be located is “like trying to nail jelly to a wall”.

Mr Carthy said the Government currently only requires a building to be available, adding that the only community engagement is an email to elected representatives.

He said many communities which were already left without public services such as garda stations and post offices were later told that the last hotel in the town would be used to accommodate asylum seekers.

Mr Toibin agreed that there was “no consultation”.

Mr O’Gorman said his party wanted to ensure that international protection accommodation is “dispersed around the country”.

He said the system was currently entirely dependent on the private sector, adding that criticisms of current processes on that basis were correct.

However, the minister said opposition parties had not set out an alternative.

“Colleagues over there are very good at setting out where they don’t want international protection applicants – but every day for the last four-and-a-half years, I and my department have had to do the opposite.

“We’ve had to find accommodation. We’ve had to make those difficult decisions.”

Mr O’Gorman has advanced a proposal aimed at moving towards more State-provided accommodation.

He said if the choice was between taking hotel accommodation and leaving people unaccommodated, he had to be honest that he would not choose the latter option.

Mr Carthy contended that this was a false choice while Mr Toibin accused the Greens of “unbelievable hypocrisy”.

The Aontu leader’s assertion was based on a Green TD objecting to housing while the party in Government supported planning exemptions for asylum centres.

Mr Toibin’s party has suggested implementing a border in the Irish Sea for the movement of people.

Mr O’Gorman described the proposal as an “absolute fantasy”.

Ms McEntee said that would essentially dismantle the Common Travel Area.

The minister said Mr Toibin had “been living under a rock” to suggest everyone crossing the open border with Northern Ireland could be checked.

She said it would be up to the British Government, to which Mr Toibin said the coalition did not have the “backbone” to even ask.

Mr Browne said putting a “metophorical wall” between the UK and Northern Ireland is “fanciful and not going to happen”.

The Aontu leader said checks on foodstuff had been achieved during Brexit negotiations.

Mr O’Gorman replied: “That’s for foodstuff. We’re dealing with people, not sausages.”

Elsewhere, the integration minister accused Sinn Fein of “walking away” from the people of Ukraine.

It came after Mr Carthy said that Ukrainians who have fled from the war to Ireland could apply for international protection when the temporary protection directive expires.

Sinn Fein said the emergency directive should not be renewed and that a uniform system for anybody fleeing war to Ireland is implemented.

Mr O’Gorman said it was an “absolutely crazy idea” to suggest thousands of Ukrainians should be moved into the international protection system “at a time when we’re starting to get some control over numbers”.