A third fewer asylum applications finalised in 2020 due to Covid

A protest against the direct provision system for asylum seekers in 2019. Picture: PA

Close to 2,300 asylum applications were finalised in 2020, down a third compared to the volume processed in the previous year.

Minister of State at the Department of Justice, James Browne, confirmed the figure in response to a parliamentary question on the impact of the  pandemic on asylum applications.

“Despite these challenges, 2,276 applications for international protection were processed to completion last year, which is just under 67% of the total achieved in 2019,” Mr Browne said.

Interviews with asylum applicants, he said, are now taking place via video link in Dublin and Cork and this will be expanded to other parts of the country.

It can take a year before asylum applicants attain their first interview as part of the process and many have remained years in the direct provision system while waiting for a final decision on their application.

Backlog

A backlog in applications was one of the issues highlighted by a government-appointed advisory group, led by former secretary general of the European Commission Catherine Day, in its report last year.

In the wake of the Day report, which found that one in four asylum seekers were in the direct provision system for three years or more, the Government has committed to ending the system by 2024 and also reducing application processing times.

Mr Browne said his department is committed to reducing processing times of both first instance decisions and appeals to six months, as detailed in the White Paper to establish a new international protection support service.

He added that a review will also take place by October next year on what progress has been made to reduce asylum application processing times.

“My department will, by October 2022 at the latest, commence a review of the progress made in reducing and improving processing times,” he said.

Ethical concerns

Fianna Fáil TD Cathal Crowe, who raised the question, said the direct provision system is not ethical and does not provide value for money.

“It has cost €175m in the past year to provide direct provision accommodation for 5,200 people. That breaks down roughly to €33,000 per person. 

"It costs the State €170,000 per annum to accommodate a family of five at a time the average house price in Clare is €200,000,” Mr Crowe said.

“We must move to a point where direct provision ends in 2024, as the Government has committed to, and housing asylum seekers within the country so they can become active citizens of Ireland,” he added.

The new international protection system will have the capacity to accommodate up to 3,500 new asylum applicants each year.