Varadkar condemns anti-refugee arson attacks: 'We may yet be investigating manslaughter and murder'

Buildings earmarked for asylum seekers have been targeted in recent weeks

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has warned that someone will be killed if arson attacks continue on properties earmarked to accommodate refugees.

He also said he expects arrests and charges in the coming weeks following an arson attack at the Ross Lake House Hotel in Galway last month.

Mr Varadkar said in a democracy, no one has the right to block people moving into their community, as protests continue outside several buildings across the country earmarked for asylum seekers.

On the latest protests in Mayo, he said it’s his understanding that discussions are "ongoing" between the owner of a property in Ballinrobe and the Department of Integration. 

A protest is continuing outside the former JJ Gannon's Hotel in Mayo as some locals are against asylum seekers moving in.

It comes as 457 refugees, who have recently arrived in the country, have not been offered accommodation by the State. 

The Irish Refugee Council has expressed concerns over the high number of people who will have to sleep rough in freezing weather conditions this week.

Condemning arson attacks at sites across the country, Mr Varadkar said: “Arson is a very serious crime whatever political beliefs people may have, and people are entitled to their political beliefs but nobody has the right to damage or burn down somebody else's property.

“I want to express my concern, people vandalising buildings, setting them alight, they can't know for sure that there isn't somebody in that building.

“It might be somebody who is a security guard, for example, who might be a night watchman. It might be someone who has a license to stay there or it might even be somebody who is sleeping rough.

“I have a real concern that not only will we face a situation whereby we're investigating arson that we may yet be investigating manslaughter and murder."

He said he understands people in Ballinrobe and elsewhere have fears but it’s important that the government communicate information to allay those concerns.

"We also need to be very clear, nobody in a free society, nobody in a democracy has the right to veto or the right to exercise a veto on who moves into their area and that doesn't just apply to international protection applicants," Mr Varadkar told RTÉ.

He said Fine Gael will allow its councillors leeway when it comes to how they deal with local issues but the party will not tolerate any form of racism or misinformation. 

Mr Varadkar said candidates have been removed from the ticket before but that has not occurred in this case. 

The Taoiseach added that there is a responsibility to reassure people that Ireland's immigration system is rules-based and "we are fair and welcoming" to those who come here legally. 

"And that we are also firm and tough on those who do not," he said.