‘Fair share’ of refugees
MINISTER HAILS EU ASYLUM PACT
IRELAND may decide to “take on more” asylum seekers from other EU countries under a new pact, according to the Justice Minister.
Helen McEntee made the comments after the European Parliament voted to approve the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, which features controversial measures.
These possibly include facial images and fingerprints being taken from children from the age of six, and people being detained during screening.
It also includes measures on faster decision-making and the sharing of responsibility across member states, which could see relocation of international protection applicants or the payment of financial contributions to the EU.
Ms McEntee said: “In terms of burdensharing, we will never be asked to accept more than our fair share.
“And it’s not that we have to accept people – we can provide financial support, we can provide expertise and knowledge. We decide that, it’s not forced upon us.
“But it might be a case where we say: ‘Well, you know what, we absolutely feel another country that’s seen a massive influx of people, we feel more capable and we’re able to take on more.’ But that’s a decision that we can make.
“But also we’re going to be given financial assistance. So if we don’t opt into this, we don’t have access to the billions of euro that will be made available to help us improve our systems for faster processing and for housing to support people in general.”
She said the EU was not developing a UKRwanda-style scheme or a plan for detaining and deporting children to third countries.
Data
Ms McEntee said there would be a greater gathering of information of migrants in the first EU country they land in, and that data would be shared among states.
“So we’ll have a clearer picture of who’s there, who’s coming, but also if there are risks – if there are people coming who pose a risk as well,” she added.
Eve Geddie, Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office head and director of advocacy, said the EU was “shamefully co-signing an agreement that they know will lead to greater human suffering”.
She added: “For people escaping conflict, persecution or economic insecurity, these reforms will mean less protection and a greater risk of facing human rights violations across Europe - including illegal and violent pushbacks, arbitrary detention and discriminatory policing.”