The starting point for Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan on the country's migration system changes was a statistic: Ireland's population increased by 1.6% last year, which was seven times the European average.
He was keen to stress, when meeting the media after the Cabinet backed his plans, that increasing our population is a good thing. However, the rate is what he termed "a worry".
The minister could not elaborate on what the rate should be set at, because that is due to be included in a National Migration Strategy, which will not be published until next year.
He is pressing ahead with change rather than waiting for the policy launch.
There were seven measures passed by Cabinet which mainly focus on applicants for international protection and those granted refugee status.
Yet Minister O'Callaghan was keen to point out that this is only the beginning of wide-ranging reforms.
He repeated that, for example, his department is examining the 60,000 visas granted to students studying English as a foreign language each year and whether that figure should be reduced.
On this week's reforms, the minister said that he was seeking to introduce a migration and asylum system which is "rules-based and efficient".
It was also clear from the media conference that "self-sufficiency" is a key tenet of his philosophy.
Take the first point: "Family reunification for those granted International Protection status will only be granted in cases where it can be shown they have sufficient resources to support family members."
In other words, if a refugee wants to bring family members to Ireland, then they have to prove that they have the finances to look after the person/s and ensure no liability will fall on the State.
The detailed document identifies financial thresholds that any applicant would have to surpass.
If you want to bring one child, then the minimum annual net salary required is €36,660. For two children, it is €41,912.
The second reform is that "residents of international protection accommodation in employment to make a financial contribution".
Once again, the detailed document had nine rates, which explained what a person would pay depending on what they earned.
If a person earns €97-€150 per week, then the contribution would be €15.
On the other end of the scale, if a person earned in excess of €600 a week, then they would pay €238.
The minister explained that, according to Department of Justice officials, around 7,500 people in IPAS centres last year would be obliged to pay something.
Minister of State Colm Brophy said in a statement that: "It makes sense for people who are earning an income and paying tax to also make a contribution to their State accommodation costs."
Minister O'Callaghan dismissed Opposition criticism that this amounted to "punching down" or "scapegoating" asylum applicants, declaring he was "not targeting asylum seekers".
Notably, he said international protection applicants would have to pay for accommodation, even if that was a tent, as a contribution would be required regardless of "the quality of accommodation provided".
This led to questions about the minister's approach to asylum seekers.
Minister O'Callaghan said the numbers coming to Ireland are "too high", and he had a "legitimate reason" for saying that, given they had jumped from 13,000 in 2022 to 18,000 in 2024.
He also noted that 81% of applicants are rejected on first instance and, if appealed, between 60% and 70% lose that too.
The third item relates to providing additional powers to the minister to "revoke refugee status where a person is found to be a danger to the security of the State or has been convicted of a serious crime".
Minister O'Callaghan said he has such powers over a person if they are an applicant, but not once they have been granted refugee status.
Asked why he just did not deport such an individual, he opined that could become "legally difficult" and therefore new powers were a better approach - even if such a situation would be very rare.
Another new provision relates to residency rights for people granted international protection, which will rise from three to five years before they can apply for citizenship.
Becoming a citizen is not a right, the minister contended, but is instead a privilege conveyed on a person by the Government.
On the time issue, he said people living in Ireland who came from outside the European Economic Area (the EU, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein) have to wait for five years, and therefore refugees should too.
There is also to be a tightening of citizenship criteria, for all applicants, "to ensure there is clear guidance on the application of good character requirements and the introduction of a requirement that applicants are self-sufficient".
There is that "self-sufficient" theme again.
There is also to be a "tightening" of family reunification rules for "most non-EEA residents".
The minister said when it came to family reunifications, the number of people who came into the State last year - either relatives of non-EEA workers or refugees - was 23,000, and he wanted that number to reduce.
He added, however, that the number of people seeking international protection this year was likely to be around 12,000, a significant reduction on 2024.
The minister said he also anticipated that the EU's Migration and Asylum Pact would result in further reductions when it comes into force next June.
The final provision passed by Cabinet was that: "International protection applicants for citizenship must be self-sufficient and not in receipt of certain social protection payments within the previous two years before an application is made."
Minister O'Callaghan robustly defended this approach, arguing the State should not have to take on the liabilities of people arriving into our country.
Where the minister was far less emphatic was on the issue of the Common Travel Area (CTA) - a subject which was not before Cabinet today.
He said that around 87% of applicants for international protection now are believed to have travelled through the CTA first, and likely another EU state before that.
This issue, he said, would be the subject of ongoing and deep discussion between Dublin and London; however, he warned against Ireland trying to introduce unilateral measures, as this would be "counter-productive".
So, sweeping changes to migration rules were passed by the Cabinet this week, and more are coming in the short term.
Minister O'Callaghan said, at one point, that he would rather be talking about any other area of his brief other than migration and asylum.
It seems he is just going to have to get used to it.
