Cllrs trade blows over immigration

The gloves are off and the bells are clanging loudly in the local election contest judging by a debate on immigration at the April monthly meeting of Cavan County Council.

Negotiating the delicate path on the hot-button topic was Sinn Féin’s Paddy McDonald, who tabled a motion calling for “more information” to be made available on the number of refugees and asylum seekers “coming into our country”.

He accused the government of failing to address the issue.

“The government are announcing measures to help solve the issues that are holding up the system, but there doesn’t appear to be any action on the ground,” he fumed, highlighting a motion he brought to the floor 12 months previous calling on then acting Minister For Justice, Simon Harris, for an update on recruitment.

Months earlier the Government had announced an extra €18M for the International Protection Office to hire staff to process asylum seekers more quickly.

“I have yet to find one single job advertised,” Cllr McDonald told the April meeting.

“We still have a crazy situation where some people are waiting years and years for their claims to be adjudicated on. While claims for people from safe countries have been sped up, there is still very little enforcement of deportation orders. The government parties announced recently that they are signing up to the new EU migration pact. It will actually lead to those from the most needy countries like Afghanistan and Syria being pushed down the list, while others from Eastern European countries like Georgia and Albania are prioritised. It will only cause genuine refugees to be more institutionalised and take longer to integrate into Irish society.”

Cllr McDonald stated that Sinn Féin has always called for a “fair but just” immigration system.

“What’s in place now is a bit of a joke. The Minister for Integration, Roderic O’Gorman has created an environment that is the complete opposite of integration,” said Cllr McDonald, who wants the Department of Justice to confirm, in writing, if the promised jobs been advertised, and how many are employed solely in the area of asylum adjudication?

“Those from safe countries and those genuinely fleeing war need equal access to a speedier process.”

Cllr McDonald also believes that rural communities with fewer services available are doing much of the heavy lifting for new arrivals.

“After the clear out of 150 men from Mount Street, conveniently just before St Patrick’s Day, we now have 50 plus men back sleeping in tents with no access to toilets or washing facilities. Surely to God they could at least be put in the grounds of a park or State-owned lands with some portaloos and basic shower facilities. There are public parks in leafy south Dublin, there’s no need to throw them out to the Dublin Mountains.”

He added that the location of International Protection and Ukrainian accommodation centres are “overwhelmingly” in the parts of the country with the poorest infrastructure and services - western coastal counties, the north inner city and western suburbs of Dublin.

“The areas with the best schools, public transport, community facilities, doctors and dentists are helping out the least. There’s something very unfair about that.”

Hidden homelessness

The same, he said, applies to the “chronic situation” facing family homeless and the “hidden homelessness crisis”.

He said it “really smacks of indifference” when, with the “stroke of a pen”, Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien was able to “change planning law” to allow owners of industrial units, halls, shops, offices and publicly owned buildings house refugees, while there are still issues around accessing to women’s refuges, homeless hubs and accommodation for street sleepers.

“It all just plays into the hands of no good agitators and racists who want to drive a wedge between working class people and migrants.”

Cllr McDonald suggested the government introduce a pilot work visa programme for skilled arrivals from “designated safe countries”.

“They shouldn’t have to resort to illegal ways of entering the country where they are often taken advantage of by smugglers who charge extortionate amounts for passports that are reused over and over again. Irish people have unfortunately been economic migrants for generations. We need to have both compassion and resources in place for those in the world who want to come here and work to create a better life for themselves and their families. And I think all of us here can agree that we need to be firmer with those who just want to come here to play the system.”

Independent Ireland’s Shane P. O’Reilly challenged Cllr McDonald on Sinn Féin’s position.

He pointed out that he too had raised this issue multiple times previously - calling on Minister O’Gorman to resign no fewer than three times.

“It smacks of, I don’t know what, that Sinn Féin would start talking about immigration,” Cllr O’Reilly mused, claiming that the Republican party has a long established position on “open borders”.

“I don’t think it helps when people play politics with things like this,” argued Cllr O’Reilly, who accepted that the opening of five new reception centres- Ballyogan Road, Dublin City (capacity 392); Stradbally, Co. Laois (950); Fernbank, Limerick City (250); Punchestown, Co. Kildare (378); and Gerald Griffin Street, Cork City (107)- “should help out”.

But he expressed his opinion that, with regards to homelessness in Ireland, “we should look after our own first”.

“Irish people are the indigenous people of this country,” he continued, and stated that the only way to deal with “opportunist” migrants was through legislation.

“We are a very caring and very giving nation,” said Cllr O’Reilly speaking of how Ireland had opened its doors to Ukrainian refugees, and acknowledging that the government is trying to put a system in place to deal with the current situation. “Those on the looney right, fascists, don’t want to do what needs to be done for this country.”

After both men had finished speaking there was a brief exchange between Cllrs McDonald and O’Reilly.

“Sinn Féin does not stand for open borders,” insisted Cllr McDonald.

“I’m sorry to say but you’re wrong,” retorted Cllr O’Reilly.

“No we don’t,” insisted Cllr McDonald.

“Yes!” said Cllr O’Reilly.