I begin by wishing the Taoiseach well. We have had no run-ins and we were always constructive. Hopefully, today will be no different and I will try to remain constructive. Some 100 years after the birth of the Irish Free State, this Chamber, which sits at the heart of our democracy, should be a forum in which Members are free to discuss issues which are of grave concern to the people we are here to represent. I would hope that we could do so in a sensitive but robust manner and that our Parliament can avoid becoming a place where there are unspoken rules that discourage certain questions from being asked and where groupthink or complicity in silence becomes the order of the day.

For an increasing number of people, one of the issues that is demanding of more serious and frank levels of open debate is that of immigration, its impact on housing, healthcare and education and the apparent dysfunctionality that surrounds our entire asylum application process. As policy issues, these must be treated like every other area, where a clear assessment of successes and failures can be discussed honestly. They cannot and must not become no-go areas in our political discourse. Unfortunately, that is what appears to be happening.

Every time my Independent colleague in the Seanad, Senator Keogan, tries to speak on these issues, she is shouted down. If I or my Rural Independent Group colleagues try to raise concerns we are accused absurdly and ridiculously of trying to tear apart the fabric of social cohesion. Yet what we are saying has inevitably proved correct.

Like many others, I am deeply concerned about the pressure and the anger that is building up in communities relating to the way in which the State has chosen to house those seeking international protection. I am more than alarmed that despite our obvious capacity deficits and the scale of the emergency, hundreds of applicants were still in tented accommodation until a few days ago, in freezing temperatures. We are at the tipping point of a real and profound social catastrophe. The rate of people entering the country from states and areas designated as safe by the EU is increasing by hundreds of percent in some cases. Our hotels are at maximum capacity. Our emergency accommodation is beyond breaking point. Our own homeless numbers are breaking records. Yet still there seems to be no plan to press the pause button.

The key point here is that we need sustainable solidarity. What we have at present is not sustainable. We need a system that is not burdened to the point of collapse yet that is what we have. We have to adopt a new approach. We have to press pause. It is a painful but obvious truth that we must recognise. Does the Taoiseach agree?

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. I assure her that no issue should be excluded from debate and discussion in this House. It is fundamental to our national Parliament that we would have open and free debate and that the voice of the contrarian is always heard. I do not apply that to the Deputy in this context, but the voice of the contrarian should always be heard. Groupthink is always dangerous and we should not always follow the herd on any issue, be it the economy, education or anything else.

Historically, if you go back 100 years, or go back further than 100 years to 1916, an interesting key ingredient of our revolution was that it was internationalist. It was not a narrow nationalism. It was internationalist from day one.

I am referring to the idea of Ireland taking its place among the nations of the world. Our membership of the League of Nations and the UN has been about adherence and loyalty to multilateral rules-based order. Stemming from this are our obligations as members of the UN and, laterally, the EU. Ireland will soon be celebrating 50 years of EU membership. That means that when the international rules-based order is attacked, we cannot stand alone as an island that is not impacted. The war in Ukraine is a war on the international rules-based order; be in no doubt about it. Putin does not want a thriving democracy on his doorstep. Fundamentally, that is what is at stake. He has raised issues of geopolitical security. They can be dealt with and agreed upon. Leaders of the EU have said to President Putin that they are open to discussions to resolve issues to do with the security architecture of Europe. However, as we speak he is bombing innocent women, children and families. He is also bombing energy infrastructure. He is deliberately, as part of a hybrid form of warfare, creating migration, energy and food crises. I do not believe that, morally, we can stand aside. Sixty-six thousand people have come to this country from Ukraine. I acknowledge it is a huge challenge. The vast majority of Irish people have opened up and said they will do what they can. This is a wartime situation; that is what we are facing. We cannot allow Putin to win by sowing the seeds of division among us because of the pressures and challenges that inevitably arise from migration flows.

With regard to international protection more globally, climate change and more conflict in places such as Ethiopia, in Africa, and the Middle East are all leading to increased migration. It is not only in Ireland but across the world. That is a reality we will have to continue to deal with and we have to stand up to our responsibilities and do the best we can on the issue.

I am very aware of the horrors of war, as we all are from watching what is happening, but I made the point in my speech that there are people coming in from areas designated as safe. The number of such cases is increasing all the time. This needs to be properly monitored and there needs to be a reasonable debate on the issue. We need a proper, functioning immigration policy. I suggested to the Taoiseach that the pause button be pressed. Can a meeting be sought with representatives in the EU so we would have some mechanism to pause what is happening here? People are being failed. If we are bringing in people, we are not giving them a céad míle fáilte if they are in tents or on hotel floors, as I have said previously. It is not right that people who do not need protection are coming in and abusing our system and, indeed, our hospitality. That is not right. There are people coming in from safe areas. It clearly proves our immigration policy is failing. There is no proper, functioning policy. These issues need to be looked at. There needs to be engagement with EU representatives because we have to press pause.

There is a robust migration policy within the State. Yesterday, we had a Cabinet subcommittee meeting involving all the relevant Departments, which I chaired. We consistently monitor the situation concerning those seeking asylum in the country. When people come into the country to seek asylum, there is a process to deal with that. There is no choice but to deal with it once an application comes in. I assure the Deputy that, at the European Council meeting this week, the issue of migration will be on the agenda, although it was not initially. Other countries are raising it because of the general increase in migration across Europe, apart altogether from the situation in Ukraine. To my mind, the fundamental way to address these issues is at source, having regard to the societies people are seeking to leave. Questions need to be asked as to why they are seeking to leave. It may be because of authoritarianism, conflict or war. It may also be because of climate change, which is creating a migration trail as many areas are now experiencing the ravages of drought and various other weather events. Such events are creating real crises in many communities across the world. It is a very challenging situation. We need to be honest with ourselves and people more generally. It is not something you can stop; it is not that simple at all.