Ireland will need to begin training doctors now, to fulfill what is proposed in the General Scheme of the International Protection Bill 2025, according to the medical charity Safetynet.
The organisation which provides primary healthcare services to vulnerable populations including asylum seekers, was among a number of groups before the Oireachtas Committee on Justice and Migration this afternoon.
When asked about whether Safetynet's capacity meet the requirements outlined in the proposed legislation, CEO Nicola Perry said services are already struggling to manage demands.
A number of organisations who work with asylum seekers and migrants have expressed concern about Ireland's implementation of the EU Asylum and Migration Pact which is due to come into effect in June next year.
The General Scheme of the International Protection Bill 2025 - which will replace the International Protection Act 2015 - has been undergoing pre-legislative scrutiny.
When the bill was published earlier this year, the Minister for Justice said a firmer migration system was "a key element" in protecting the integrity of Ireland's immigration framework, while supporting those in need of international protection.
In summary, the pact establishes legally binding time limits for processing asylum applications.
Mandatory border procedure
It sets out situations in which applications must be accelerated including where authorities are misled through the presentation of false information or documents, or withholding information or documents - especially regarding identity or nationality.
It includes a mandatory border procedure which requires the first-instance, appeal and return decisions to be made within 12 weeks.
Additional safeguards and requirements to the asylum procedure have also been proposed.
The Joint Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration which has been examining the General Scheme of the Bill has heard from organisations including the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC), the UNHCR, the Ombudsman for Children's Office, the Children's Rights Alliance, the Irish Refugee Council, Doras, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, the Bar of Ireland and Safetynet Primary Care.
More clarity has been sought regarding detention centres, vulnerability checks, legal counselling and appeals.
The pact requires the State to provide applicants with free legal counselling at first instance stage and free legal assistance and representation at appeal stage.
However, the proposed bill does not define "legal counselling" nor does it specify who should provide it.
Free legal counselling will create two-tier system, says Bar of Ireland
The Bar of Ireland has said that this will create a two-tier system, allowing "legal counsellors" and "cultural mediators" who are not fully qualified lawyers, to act as initial advisors.
Patricia Brazil SC told the committee that it would undermine legal privilege, trust, and the applicant's right to effective legal assistance.
"We strongly urge that only practitioners recognised under Irish law may advise or represent applicants at every stage, from screening to appeal, and that existing restrictions on legal practitioner participation be removed in line with international obligations," she said.
Her comments follow a decision by Minister Jim O'Callaghan to enter into an agreement which will see 30 European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) personnel deployed to support the International Protection Appeals Tribunal in Ireland.
The EUAA will assist the tribunal to process appeals lodged against first instance decisions.
The aim of the partnership, which was announced yesterday, is to help to speed up the decision timeframes in the tribunal to reduce timeframes for appeals according to the department.
The UNHCR pointed out that under the proposed Bill, the timeframe for lodging an appeal is short (in some cases as little as five days), and that there is a default practice of deciding appeals without oral hearings.
Maria Hennessy of UNHCR Ireland said short timelines, particularly for vulnerable applicants, mean that applicants may not have enough time to access legal advice and properly prepare their appeals and recommended flexibility.
Restrictions on movement may be imposed
Under the General Scheme, restrictions on movement may be imposed during screening and border procedures.
The screening process involves mandatory identity, security, health, and vulnerability checks and biometric data for individuals who arrive irregularly at the EU's external borders.
These checks must take place within seven days in designated reception centers located at external borders under the Asylum pact.
However, CEO of Nasc Fiona Hurley said the Bill proposed by the Irish Government failed to provide sufficient detail on how restrictions would be applied, how long they would last, or how applicants could challenge them.
Current international protection legislation prohibits the detention of children, including unaccompanied children, however, the detention of children has not been specifically excluded from the proposed Bill.
The Children's Rights Alliance, the Ombudsman for Children's Office and others have highlighted this omission; the former noting impact that immigration detention can have on children’s physical and mental health and on their development.
The Irish Refugee Council said the Bill failed to transpose many of the protections that were contained in the EU's Pact Directives.
"This Committee is being asked to scrutinise a Bill that contains significant omissions on critical issues: legal counselling, age assessment and reception conditions," CEO Nick Henderson said.
There is scepticism about whether the State will meet its implementation deadline in June 2026, considering the legal and institutional transformation required.
IHREC pointed out last week that given the State’s "chronic failure" to deliver vulnerability assessments under the existing IP system, "there's little or no realistic prospect" that "the necessary level and quality of vulnerability assessments within the prescribed time periods" will be delivered.
The Joint Committee on Justice and Migration has now completed its public hearings.
Committee chairperson Matt Carthy said there were "a lot of issues that will need to be clarified by the Minister for Justice in relation to the general scheme of the International protection bill".
The committee will now begin work on its compiling its report which will include conclusions and recommendations.
