Hike in cross-Border illegal immigrants

THE number of people caught trying to cross the Border illegally from the North is up almost 20% on last year, according to figures.

Police authorities on both sides of the Border yesterday said it was a “significant problem”, but that increased co-operation between the two jurisdictions meant they had good intelligence on the issue.

Law enforcement authorities tasked with immigration control from Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England gathered for the first time at a two-day conference in Dublin yesterday to address various issues, including human trafficking and counter-terrorism.

Garda figures published at the conference show that the number of people refused entry at the Border jumped from 888 in 2005 to 1,058 so far this year, a rise of 19%.

The data, compiled by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB), said a total of 5,437 people were turned away at the country’s ports and airports so far this year, compared to a total of 4,939 in 2005, a rise of around 10%.

Most of the people caught trying to cross the Border from Northern Ireland are caught by a special GNIB unit in Dundalk, Co Louth.

“We have a border control unit in Dundalk, which has been very effective this year. The figures they are detecting are quite dramatic,” said Detective Inspector Philip Ryan of GNIB.

Garda figures show that 1,035 people were turned away by the Dundalk unit so far this year, compared to 869 last year. Det Insp Ryan said the people have various nationalities, but that the highest numbers were Nigerian and Romanian nationals.

Phil Taylor, regional director for Scotland and Northern Ireland for the British Immigration and Nationality Directorate (INS), said the scale of illegal immigration into the Republic from the North was a “significant problem”, but they had a handle on it.

Mr Ryan said human trafficking was the issue causing most concern, particularly when it involved the sex trade and underage girls and children.

“That’s the one that causes us the most sleepless nights. How to counter that is top of the agenda.”