Micheál Martin
Ceist:143. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the detail of the commitment in the programme for Government concerning ensuring a balanced migration policy. [30717/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 18 October 2016
Ceisteanna (143)
Freagraí scríofa
It is important to state at the outset that a particular focus of my Department in the coming period will be to support the Government's ongoing engagement with UK and EU partners in relation to 'Brexit' with a view to ensuring a beneficial outcome for Ireland. Immigration and borders policy, including the preservation of the Common Travel Area, is of course of central importance to this process.
The Programme for a Partnership Government sets out the objective of pursuing a balanced migration policy that supports our economy and meets our international and humanitarian obligations, whilst also taking a tough approach to tackling illegal migration. It also commits to supporting a humanitarian response to the current refugee crisis and providing a safe haven to those who come to Ireland under EU programmes. The Programme also sets out a number of actions to be taken by the Government in achieving these goals. Significant progress has already been made across a wide number of areas in delivering on this programme including:
Supporting the Economy: Key examples of work in this area include Ireland’s Immigrant Investor Scheme and Start-Up Entrepreneur Programme as well as our ongoing work to support the implementation of Ireland’s International Education Strategy (2016-2020), which was launched in October by the Minister for Education and Skills. Economic activity and tourism are also supported by measures such as the British Irish Visa Scheme (BIVS), whereby a visitor to either Ireland or the UK requires only one single visa (either an Irish or UK one depending on their first country of landing) and the recent extension of the Irish Short Stay Visa Waiver Programme for a further five years to 31 October 2021 which make it easier for visitors from countries covered under the programme to come to visit Ireland.
Irish Refugee Protection Programme: The IRPP was established by Government Decision on 10 September 2015 as a direct response to the humanitarian crisis that developed in Southern Europe as a consequence of mass migration from areas of conflict in the Middle East and Africa. The IRPP pledged to accept a total of 4,000 persons, through a combination of the EU relocation mechanism established by two EU Council Decisions in 2015 to assist Italy and Greece, and the UNHCR-led refugee resettlement programme currently focused on resettling refugees from camps in Jordan and Lebanon. This was made up of 520 under resettlement and 2,622 under the EU Relocation programme. A further 260 has been approved by the Government under Resettlement, with the balance of the allocation to be decided. By the end of this year the full complement of 520 will be resettled.
My officials are in Lebanon now finalising the additional 260 under resettlement who will arrive next Spring and I am actively considering a further substantial pledge under resettlement.
While the relocation programme from Greece and Italy has been slower to progress due to on the ground logistical and technical challenges there, following constant engagement and visits from my officials, significant numbers of asylum seekers are now beginning to arrive in Ireland from Greece and I am hopeful that numbers will also start arriving from Italy in due course. It is expected that up to 400 persons will arrive by year end under this programme. The intention is to sustain the pace of intakes throughout 2017, at the levels required to allow Ireland to meets its commitments within the timeframe envisaged by the Programme. This will depend on the continued cooperation of the Greek and Italian authorities in the process of selecting and assessing persons for assignment to Ireland.
Working Group on the Protection Process: The Report of the Working Group on the Protection Process was published following the Government decision of 30 June, 2015. A significant number of the Working Group recommendations have now been implemented, partially implemented or are in progress. It should also be noted that a small number of the recommendations have been superseded by Government initiatives in the interim since the publication of the Report. In responding to length of time issues my Department has been proactively engaged in an examination of cases of those longest in the system. These cases are being expedited resulting in a substantial number of people who were greater than five years in the system now dealt with. This has been a significant achievement which has had a real impact on many people and families in the protection process. A key recommendation of the Working Group was the introduction of a single application procedure in the protection process. The International Protection Act 2015, which provides for such a procedure, was signed by the President on 30 December 2015. It introduces significant reform of the multi-layered sequential protection process. With additional resources to address the significant number of cases in the current system, the intention is to commence the single application procedure in the coming months taking into account the significant transitional arrangements needed to be put in place in advance of commencement. When successfully implemented and resourced it is aimed that a determination of the applicant’s status can be made in approximately 6 – 9 months.
Integration: The Office for the Promotion of Migrant Integration, which operates under the ambit of my Department, has a cross-Departmental mandate to develop, lead and coordinate migrant integration policy across other Government Departments, agencies and services. The Office is currently engaged in a review of the approach to the integration of migrants with a view to the preparation and publication of a new updated Migrant Integration Strategy. The work undertaken by the Office thus far has included, inter alia, an extensive public consultation process including the involvement of key stakeholders. The Strategy is being finalised and will be published at the end of 2016.
Enforcement: The legislation in the enforcement area was recently amended by way of section 78 of the International Protection Act 2015, commenced on 10 March this year. These amendments have inserted a new section 5 into the Immigration Act 1999 which deals with effecting deportation orders for persons illegally present in the State. The increasing number of deportation orders effected since the legislative changes were introduced demonstrates the knock-on effect of the new legislation. Targeted measures are being deployed to tackle abuse of our immigration and asylum system. Specific Garda immigration operations run at the land border with Northern Ireland and at the Ports and other measures, such as Operation Vantage, have resulted in a reduction in the number of asylum seekers who have previous UK immigration histories. Operation Vantage is ongoing and forms part of my Department’s overall response to preventing so called "sham marriages" taking place. Garda intelligence arising from the operation and information and data gathered from applications to INIS have led to the review of over 350 relevant applications by INIS, with a view to revoking immigration permission which may have been obtained by false pretences. In addition, the Garda National Immigration Bureau, INIS and the General Registrars Office for Births, Marriages and Deaths continue to work closely to prevent such marriages taking place and to ensure no immigration advantage is gained as a result. In addition, concerns regarding abuses of Free Movement are also the subject of investigation.