Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth Roderic O’Gorman has said the Government agrees with the finding of an advisory group that the current direct provision system for asylum-seekers must be replaced.

The report, by a group chaired by former European Commission Secretary General Dr Catherine Day (pictured), recommends that a new system should be in place no later than mid-2023, adding that the current system is “not fit for purpose”.

The minister said, however, that the change was complex and would take time. He added that the Government would introduce immediate reforms to the system, ahead of the publication of a White Paper on the issue which is due by the end of the year.

'Reactive' system

The UN’s refugee agency, the UNHCR, has urged the Government to urgently implement the main recommendations of the report, which was commissioned by the Government last year and published today (21 October).

Overall, the advisory group says Ireland should move away from a system it describes as “largely reactive, based on regarding international protection as a temporary phenomenon”. The group proposes a permanent system that accepts Ireland will need to process around 3,500 new applications for international protection every year.

The group recommends an end to the current system of direct provision, instead proposing a system of independent living in the community, where asylum-seekers would move after an initial period in reception centres. The measure is aimed at facilitating the integration of asylum-seekers in local communities across the country.

The group says the Government should provide ‘own-door’ accommodation sourced through the local authorities within three months of an application for protection.

It says the proposed new system would be more cost-effective as well as humane, and estimates that it would have resulted in a saving of €35.9 million had it been in place in 2019.

Waiting times

The report also says people who apply for international protection in Ireland should receive a decision within six months.

The current average waiting time is 14 months, according to the UN body, which describes the new proposal as a “significant reform”.

The report says appeal cases should also be completed within six months.

The group also wants the Government to set up an independent inspectorate to monitor new standards for direct provision centres being introduced in January 2021.

Other recommendations include the early identification of asylum-seekers with vulnerabilities and special needs, including the provision of medical screening and vulnerability assessments in reception centres.

The report says the legislative changes needed to implement the new system should be in place by the end of 2021.

Inspections

Minister O’Gorman said the Government would “shortly” introduce vulnerability assessments, and that his department had already spoken to HIQA about undertaking independent inspections of current accommodation.

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said the Government had also approved a number of changes in relation to asylum-seekers' access to the labour market, including a reduction in the waiting period from nine to six months from the date of their first application.

Asylum-seekers will then be able to work for 12 months. A restriction on working for public health employers will also be removed.