Tents and Government asylum policy

Sir, – The words have changed but the sentiment is alive and well (“More than 100 asylum seeker tents cleared from Grand Canal in Dublin during early morning operation”, News, May 9th). The tent dwellers along the canal were awoken and handed a note informing them, “You are committing an offence. If you refuse to come to the available accommodation or if you later return to stay in this area you may be removed by An Garda Síochána and you may be arrested and prosecuted.”

The original “Poor Laws” were introduced to deal specifically with the homeless. The Vagabonds and Beggars Act stated, “Suspected persons shall be set in the stocks for three days . . . and then shall be put out of Town”. Despite the passing of 400 years, any difference in the treatment of the unfortunate by the blessed is superficial. – Yours, etc,

JIM O’SULLIVAN,

Rathedmond,

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Sligo.

Sir, – The recently introduced “right to work” clause allows international protection applicants the right to apply to work if five months have elapsed from the initial application for asylum and no decision has been reached on the application.

This is likely acting as an incentive for economic migrants to come here and may even be used by the human traffickers in their sales pitch as a reason to pay more to get to Ireland.

Removing incentives such as the above for those who are economic migrants may reduce economic migrant numbers and thus enable the International Protection Office to then better assess the fewer applications of those who are genuine asylum seekers.

This “right to work” and the failure to actively deport failed asylum seekers is surely incentivising economic migrants.

As is the failure to immediately deport those who arrive in Ireland “without” documents, which they had and required and possessed when boarding the plane or ferry that brought them to Ireland. – Yours, etc,

DAVID DORAN,

Bagenalstown,

Co Carlow.

A chara, – Yesterday morning multiagency State organisations were in the process of clearing the Grand Canal of up to 100 tents that have sprung up over the past week by people who have chosen to claim asylum in Ireland.

Last week the Government removed tents from the streets around the International Protection Office, and erected barriers to prevent any person pitching a tent there. The State is one of two European Union countries which have an “opt-out” clause under the Lisbon Treaty in relation to migration and asylum policy. Denmark, as the other country with an opt-out clause, chose to invoke this arrangement in 2021. Surely in light of the numbers choosing to claim asylum in Ireland, serious consideration should be given to triggering this clause, due to the lack of housing and support services available to cater for this increase in population. The Government response appears to be to refer these men to agencies that will provide them with tents, while then moving into these encampments and clearing the site of both people and tents.

Shambolic is not a strong enough word to describe this governmental response. – Is mise,

EAMONN O’HARA,

Manorcunningham,

Co Donegal.

Sir, – Yesterday morning the State started clearing the immigrants in tents along the canal.

Is this the State version of whack-a-mole? – Yours, etc,

DAVID JORDAN,

Dublin 16.

Sir, – Now that the tent village has been removed from both Mount Street and the Grand Canal, I wonder whether the bookies are taking bets on where the next tent village will pop up in central Dublin. – Yours, etc,

PAVEL MARIANSKI,

Dungarvan,

Co Waterford.

Sir, – I wonder how different Kavanagh’s lines would be today if he were musing on a seat by the Grand Canal, Dublin? – Yours, etc,

IVAN RUSK,

Quin,

Co Clare.

Sir, – I suspect that many non-Irish citizens resident in Ireland are unaware that they can vote in the local elections.

Maybe this is a job for the Electoral Commission to inform them. – Yours, etc,

FRANK O’CONNOR,

Glenageary,

Co Dublin.