Six-month turnaround promised for asylum seekers’ applications

Asylum seekers can expect a maximum six-month turnaround in their applications to stay in Ireland from next spring, a junior minister has said.

Equality Minister Aodhán Ó Ríordáin said the reforms to asylum-seeking legislation would do away with scenarios where people could end up spending years in direct provision centres.

This was “intolerable”, he said.

However, the Labour minister signalled that an amnesty for families, particularly children, who had already spent years in the system awaiting a decision on their status was unlikely.

“I don’t think so. I don’t want to preempt the work of the working group…let’s give it the chance to come up with its recommendations to Government.”

A working group is looking at the length of time to process asylum applications and other matters such as applicants’ access to education and the role of communities and applicants’ rights to work. It will be set up in the coming weeks.

The changes by Government, known as the ‘single procedure mechanism’, will reduce the asylum-seeking process from five to three steps and will also include an appeals process.

“We hope to have it [the legislation] from the beginning of next year and it really will make a difference to those seeking asylum,” the Dublin North-Central TD told RTÉ’s This Week.

The heads of the legislation are expected to go before Cabinet next month.

In recent weeks asylum seekers at direct provision centres in Portlaoise, Athlone, Foynes and two centres in Cork have mounted protests over their care and the delays in having their applications assessed.

Mr Ó Ríordáin said the 4,000 asylum seekers in the State could not remain living in a “legalistic limbo” when their cases are appealed or brought before the courts. The review would also look at whether there were abuses in the system, he said.