Deportation during Covid
Deputy Whitmore raised a constituent facing deportation after 14 years in Ireland and argued removals were inhumane during the pandemic. The Taoiseach said the Government's view was that people should not be deported at present unless they pose a national security threat.
A constituent of mine from Wicklow has to present himself tomorrow for deportation. It is two weeks out from Christmas, we are in the middle of a pandemic and this man has lived in the country for 14 years contributing to his community during that time. It is inhumane to deport someone after 14 years of living somewhere.
Unfortunately, he and many others are being caught in this limbo land between an old system that we all agree is not fit for purpose and the Government has committed to reform and those reforms being formalised and being put in place. Does the Taoiseach agree that, unless in instances of national security, deportations should be stopped during the pandemic and that when people are being assessed under the current process the intent of the new Government policy and the recommendations of the Catherine Day report should be taken into consideration during that processing and assessment?
Comment on this
The Government's view is similar to the Deputy's in the context of Covid-19, that unless people represent a threat to national security they should not be deported at the present point in time. Deporting is a part of our wider migration management programme but in the context of Covid, we have obligations to the health of people, irrespective of status, for example, in terms of sending someone back to a red zone in respect of the prevalence of the Covid virus. In the context of the legislation before the Seanad this week, the Minister for Justice is making the point that whilst wanting to retain the capacity in terms of threat to national security or other factors, we would have a stay on deportations.