The most significant reform of immigration law in the history of the State has been passed by the Dáil and now goes to President Catherine Connolly for consideration and signature.
The controversial International Protection Bill was accepted by 86 votes to 62 after a final and curtailed three-hour debate which considered 267 Government amendments from the Seanad, most of which passed without debate.
The reforming legislation aims to bring asylum law in line with the European Union Migration and Asylum Pact in advance of a June 6th deadline.
The pact introduces a wide number of restrictive measures to limit the number of immigrants gaining access to the EU.
Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan said he was seeking to “shift the balance slightly in favour of the State” and “reduce the numbers coming into Ireland” as the legislation came under Opposition fire.
The Government is trying to consolidate in one piece of legislation Ireland’s response to people applying for international protection, he said.
The Bill includes the Reception Conditions Directive and the requirements on Ireland when a person claims asylum, including the provision of accommodation.
Under the reforms first time asylum applications are expected to be processed within three months with any appeal dealt with within a further three months.
Applicants will undergo a screening process including security and identity checks including the taking of biometric data.
The legislation establishes an appeals tribunal with fewer oral hearings and permits the detention of children in defined “last resort” circumstances for up to 12 hours and “in the best interests” of the minor.
In the final debate Sinn Féin justice spokesman Matt Carthy accused the Minister of taking a “reckless” approach guided solely by the need to live up to the provisions of the EU pact.
The pact “takes no account of the unique circumstances” of a “nation that is divided”, he said.
It also takes no account of the Common Travel Area with a State that is not part of the EU or the pact, he added.
The Minister told him however that “no matter whether we are in the migration pact or not, we still have to deal with individuals coming into Ireland to claim asylum.
“The UK decided to get out, not just of the pact but out of the EU, and their issues in respect of international protection have not in any way been reduced”.
Labour justice spokesman Alan Kelly told the Minister “it’s bad legislation” and “you’ll have an army of lawyers coming in,” adding there will be “huge legal challenges”.
The Minister acknowledged the legislation will end up in the courts. “It is new legislation,” and “lawyers will be parsing over it”.
He said there are “endless judgments” on the international protection system. “It is just a very litigious area,” because of the large numbers coming into Ireland and the high proportion of refusals.
Social Democrats justice spokesman Gary Gannon appealed to allow family unification within a year of an asylum seeker being granted leave to stay in the State.
He said the current waiting time is about 18 months but the increase to two years “means that a person will have to wait the best part of three, three-and-a-half years” to be reunited with family.
The Dublin Central TD said family reunification “has never been in any way a great impact upon the system. The numbers are fairly minuscule.”
O’Callaghan told him, however, that asylum policy in Ireland must “take into account what is happening in the UK because it has a very significant impact on what happens in Ireland”.
The UK last September suspended refugee family reunification, he said and he had to take account of events in the UK that create a “pull factor” for Ireland.
“It may not sound virtuous but I want to try to reduce the numbers coming into Ireland,” the Minister added, because the statistics showed too many people seeking asylum were subsequently found not to be entitled to remain in the State.
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) welcomed a number of the amendments the Minister made to the legislation including around accommodation for disable people, pregnant women, trafficking victims and unaccompanied children in deciding on accommodation.
But it said it still had significant human rights concerns.
Chief Commissioner Liam Herrick said “the Bill still provides for overly broad and questionable powers of detention, does not provide for access to legal advice and representation at the first stage and purports to restrict the right to family reunification.”