Rushed immigration bill is ‘flawed’

A SENIOR civil servant has conceded controversial new immigration legislation is flawed because of a rush to bring it before the Oireachtas.

Marion Walsh, executive director of the Department of Justice’s new anti-trafficking unit, told a weekend conference that the draft Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill was published before those drafting it considered it finished.

Ms Walsh said because the immigration bill was included in the Government’s programme of legislation there was pressure to bring before the Oireachtas. She told the conference in University College Cork it was published against the wishes of civil servants and they were proved right.