State experiencing ‘international protection emergency’

The High Court has heard that the State is experiencing an “international protection emergency, and it has taken the “necessary and possible steps” to meet its obligations to those seeking asylum here “in that context”.

On the second day of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission’s case against the State over its failure to provide accommodation to all those seeking asylum here, Senior Council for the State, David Conlan Smith told the court that the increase in numbers seeking protection were “entirely beyond the control of the State”.

Mr Conlan Smith said that the “migratory pressures were not forcible” and the State was claiming “Force Majeure in light of migratory pressure”.

The court heard that between 2019 and 2023, the EU had seen the numbers seeking protection increase by 59%, while Ireland had seen an increase in 185%.

Mr Conlan Smith told the court that on 1 June 2022 the State was provided accommodation to 8,582 international protection applicants.

Mr Conlan Smith said the Government has increased accommodation “by a multiple of 11 in two years”.

Today, the court heard that 96,000 people seeking protection are being accommodated, a figure that includes both Ukrainian beneficiaries of temporary protection and international protection applicants.

Mr Conlan Smith said that international protection applicants accounted for 30,366 of these, almost a third.

“The figures are stark and show the scale of the challenge posed and it cannot be said, having regard to the roll out of accommodation that there is any case of Government indifference.”