Concerns expressed regarding Ireland's new Immigration Bill Sunday October 3, 2010.
Costly court challenges are inevitable if Government persists with move to allow summary deportations: Immigrant Council of Ireland.

Costly court challenges will inevitably follow Government moves to allow for summary deportation of migrants in proposed new immigration legislation, Immigrant Council of Ireland chief executive Denise Charlton said today. The Bill is scheduled to be debated in the Dáil on Wednesday. Ms Charlton said provisions in the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill 2010 allowing for summary deportations were contrary to 2008 Supreme Court rulings setting out the issues the Government must take into account before deporting someone.

“In addition, the provisions ignore a recommendation from the UN Human Rights Committee which urged Ireland to outlaw summary deportations as they are contrary to international law,” Ms Charlton said. “It appears the Government has decided to persist with legislating to allow summary deportations after telling opposition parties that this part of the legislation would be scrapped. “During the summer, stories appeared in newspapers about the proposed new legislative provisions in conjunction with statistics about failed asylum applications. “It would be a travesty if the Government had decided to pursue this agenda in the hope of achieving some kind of political gain when it knows there is every chance the courts will strike the provisions down.”

Ms Charlton said legislation allowing for summary deportations would run the risk of creating conditions under which real injustices could occur.
“The Coalition committed itself to establishing a fair and strategic immigration system in its Programme for Government,” she said. “The introduction of
summary deportations is neither – it’s purely political.

“The ICI would strongly urge legislators to reject that part of the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill allowing for summary deportations and provide for fair removal procedures, including independent appeals, instead.” For more information, please contact Ruth Evans on 087 067 3676.