Immigration Bill: Concerns not addressed

THE State’s human rights watchdog yesterday strongly criticised key parts of a government bill aimed at overhauling the immigration system.

The Irish Human Rights Commission said it had raised some of these concerns after a first draft of the legislation more than a year ago, but said they had not been taken on board.

The commission said it was particularly concerned at provisions allowing for the detention of asylum seekers in prisons or Garda cells and provisions that will prevent court applications from stopping deportations.