An injunction seeking to prevent a guesthouse owner taking in 38 asylum-seekers in north Cork was sought yesterday by a nearby resident who said she feared for her safety.
Schoolteacher Ms Margaret Lombard said in an affidavit that plans were under way to turn the Ballyhooley Lodge in Ballyhooley into a hostel to accommodate "38 persons unknown, whose arrival was imminent".
She applied for an order in Cork Circuit Court to stop its owner, Mr Patrick Tiernan, accepting the asylum-seekers.
"I feel concerned for my safety, particularly as I would be the victim of any criminal activity. The arrival of so many people in such a quiet, isolated area will cause me great distress and disruption," her affidavit said.
Judge Bryan McMahon said Ms Lombard's objection seemed to be based on the fact that the guesthouse had no planning permission and "a more amorphous fear for what might happen if it is converted for certain types of people". Mr Tiernan's barrister, Mr Jim Duggan, said Ms Lombard's application was "anticipatory". He said Mr Tiernan was considering applying to the Department of Justice to accommodate asylum-seekers but he had not done so. "She fears for her safety and she can't go to work if these people come in. Again, it is anticipatory - we can't say what people are coming in. It might be 38 nuns, we don't know," he said.
Judge McMahon said he would reserve judgment until Monday but he pointed out that Mr Tiernan had acknowledged that he did not have planning permission to operate the premises as a guesthouse, though he could apply for retention.
He said that whether he granted or vacated the injunction, Ms Lombard could raise her objection when Mr Tiernan applied for permission to retain his operation as a guesthouse.