Immigration Policy

Policy: Immigration

Immigration Policy: Executive Summary
Immigration is one of the most pressing political challenges for the international community today. It is imperative that governments realise they cannot ignore immigration and instead need clear legislation and guidelines in place to deal with the issue fairly and adequately.

In Government the Green Party will:

· Introduce an Immigration System in Ireland based on best practice elsewhere (e.g. US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand). The Green Party favours decisions on how many immigrants should be admitted being based on a quota system, rather than a system of direct labour market needs. A new system would preferably be based on a points system that is fair and transparent, where the people with the most needed skills are given higher points and chosen first to get a visa, as happens in Canada. Other less skilled workers, for which there is a considerable demand in Ireland at present, can be chosen as part of a lottery-based Green card system such as applies in the US. Furthermore, our immigration policy will focus on the rights and entitlements of immigrants rather than concentrating on restrictions to their entry into this country;
· Set up a Ministry of State for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs in the Department of the Taoiseach with responsibility for driving a robust, high-level cross-departmental process that would co-ordinate the work of all departments and agencies that have a brief in relation to immigration policy;
· Shift the issuing of work permits from the employer to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and ensure all forms of permission to work are issued to the employee rather than the employer;
· Fund comprehensive immigrant research in Ireland, based on the immigration that has occurred to date;
· Promote long-term multi-cultural integration strategies as a key element of national immigration policies;
· Fund awareness campaigns that educate the Irish public about the role of immigration in Irish society, on the changing nature of Irish national identity and the contribution of immigrants in Ireland, and establish a national forum to facilitate this debate;
· Ensure cultural sensitivity training is provided for public service workers;
· Introduce a visibly independent appeal process for Immigration decisions, based on the principle of fair and prompt treatment of applicants;
· Ensure that no prospective immigrant will be held in detention for migration-related reasons, other than in the most exceptional circumstances (i.e. where a prospective migrant poses a serious danger to public safety);
· Ensure advice and assistance are provided in appropriate languages at ports of entry and that legal aid is provided for immigration cases;
· Provide suitable training for immigration officers and encourage greater ethnic minority participation in the Immigration Service;
· Fund the services offered by ethnic-led non-governmental organisations working with the immigrant community, in particular those which provide for the educational, cultural and linguistic needs of migrant workers;
· Accept equivalent overseas educational and professional qualifications for jobs in the public sector and encourage this in the private sector. We will set up a register of overseas qualifications and their Irish/EU equivalents to assist this and will encourage and fund supplementary training or conversion courses where necessary;
· Ensure that employment legislation protects economic migrants from being exploited by their employers;
· Streamline administrative arrangements for immigrants in such areas as PPS numbers, bank accounts and tax;
· Remove restrictive legislation surrounding work permit holders so that they can be reunited with their families after three months, provide equal status between work permit holders and visa holders and allow partners of permit holders the automatic entitlement to work following reunification;
· Amend the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 2001 pertaining to marriage (i.e. provide for long-term residency while waiting for citizenship);
· Ensure that family reunification will include same-sex partners;
· Underpin the right to work in Ireland with the principle of ‘permanence’ that recognises that workers are people with families who can become permanent members of society if they so wish and introduce legislation entitling any person legally resident in Ireland for three years or more to apply for permanent residency;
· Ensure that families will not be divided by deportation unless the deportee poses a serious danger to public safety.

Immigration policy

1. Introduction
Immigration is one of the most pressing political challenges for the international community today, and in particular for the developed countries of the West. The legacy of colonialism, political and religious conflict and the impacts of economic globalisation, including the disruption of traditional economies and uneven patterns of development, have all been major causes of global migration. It is imperative that governments realise they cannot ignore migration and instead need clear legislation and guidelines in place to deal with the issue fairly and adequately.

1.1. The Irish Context
As a rapidly developing economy, Ireland needs migrant workers to provide essential skills and services. This country is experiencing an excess demand for particular kinds of skills, and has failed to retain staff in the public sector because of the lack of competitive pay and conditions. There is a need to balance the scales to ensure that the labour market’s requirements are met by migrant workers, without threatening job market opportunities for Irish citizens. In Ireland up to the early 1990s there has been very little in the way of legislation covering immigration . However, in the late 1990’s labour shortages led to an increase of work permits and visas issued to immigrants seeking work in this country.

Ireland is still coming to terms with its transition from an emigrant to an immigrant society. It has moved from a position of having virtually no immigration policy in 2000 to a tightening of the regulations in 2003 because of fears of a decline in the economy. Currently Irish immigration policy is piecemeal, market-driven and is aimed at attracting temporary workers to fill shortages in the labour force. Our immigration system is characterised by a set of ad-hoc procedures, poor co-ordination between several Government Departments and outdated methods for dealing with immigrants. The lack of an adequate immigration policy in this country has resulted in continuing labour shortages in certain sectors, delays in renewing work permits and a general lack of protection for immigrants in relation to employment legislation. It is essential that more modern and streamlined legislation and administrative procedures be introduced to respond to these problems.

A report published in December 2004 by the Central Statistics Office, entitled ‘Population and Labour Force Projection 2006-36’ forecasts radical changes in Ireland’s demographic profile over the period. It predicts that those over 65 years will grow from the present 430,000 to 1.1 million in 2036, and will comprise one fifth of the population rather than the present one tenth. It estimates that there will be three times more people aged over 80 and that the young population under 16 will grow from 750,000 to over one million. These are startling figures and underline how important a progressive immigration policy will be in this country to ensure that the economy will be able to fund the necessary pension schemes, care, health and educational facilities into the future.

The challenge for the Irish government in developing an immigration policy is to create legal ways of entering the country outside of the asylum system, through facilitating work-based immigration. The development of an Irish immigration policy must however ensure that immigrants are not simply labelled as economic entities, while denying them social and cultural rights. A suitably broad framework for policy development is needed which will incorporate the human rights and socio-economic concerns of migrants and recognise the value of cultural diversity as well as balancing national security concerns. Residency rights, family unity, trade union representation and the provision of extra accommodation and social housing are amongst the issues that must be addressed as part of the development of a comprehensive immigration policy in Ireland.

1.2 The Developing World Context
Immigration policies must avoid creating forms of socially biased migration whereby educated people move from poor to rich countries, thus causing a ‘brain- drain’ or a ‘skills drain’. Of course this form of migration also generates positive effects when migrants financially support relatives at home, or return to their countries of origin with new skills and experience. For this reason, any immigration policy should be accompanied by development efforts in the country of origin. This will be enabled by a flexible visa policy, allowing return trips without the loss of the right to return to Ireland, or in the case of a Europe-wide immigration policy, to the EU. Migrant workers can represent social resources for the host country and contribute to the development of their countries of origin. Development aid policies, and in particular the achievement of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals will play a part in encouraging sustainable and acceptable living conditions in developing world countries, and in ensuring that no-one has to migrate because of hunger or poverty.

1.3 Different categories of immigrants in Ireland
It is important that any immigration policy recognises that some immigrants are in Ireland for the short-term, and others for the long-term and so it is imperative that the needs of these different categories of immigrants are met. The following are some of the categories of immigrants classified within Ireland:

· Those given working visas (approximately 2000 in 2003 – skilled workers)
· Those employed on a work permit (approx. 50,000 in 2003- unskilled workers)
· Students (allowed to work part-time)
· EU nationals
· New EU Accession Country Nationals (with limited working rights)
· Residency applicants (e.g. based on the birth of an Irish child up to February 2003 or marriage to an Irish citizen)
· Family members of those with residency
· Reunified family members (of visa holders or residency holders)
· Programme refugees
· Applicants for asylum (7,900 in 2003)
· Those granted leave to remain (on humane grounds)
· Those granted asylum and given refugee status

People belonging to the above categories are treated in very different ways and have different sets of rights and entitlements. Some have the right to employment and education while others have very different experiences. The temporary nature of all forms of permission to work in Ireland makes it difficult for people to settle down, buy a home and develop a career through training or promotion. It is important that immigrants in Ireland should know exactly what their rights and entitlements are for each category they fit in to.

Furthermore, the Green Party believes that there should be common core rights and entitlements for every immigrant living in Ireland. The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families was adopted by the UN General Assembly resolution 45/158 of 19th December 1990. Ireland has not yet ratified this Convention, which would guarantee worker’s protection and prevent them from being exploited. The party supports the development of an immigration policy underpinned by a human rights approach that respects the minimum standards set down in international human rights law in relation to migrant workers.

1.4 Work visas and work permits
The Irish immigration system is market-led and the majority of non-European Economic Area nationals working in Ireland do so on temporary forms of permission to work, of which there are two main types - work permits and work visas. Those who enter Ireland on the basis of a work visa/work authorisation scheme are the lucky few. They are the skilled workers needed in certain sectors of the Irish economy such as professionals and technicians in the IT sector, professionals in construction and registered nurses. Working visas/work authorisations are issued directly to these employees who are free to change job within the stated time of their visa. Since February 2004, spouses of workers under this scheme have an automatic right to work. They also have the right to apply for their family to join them after a period of 3 months in the country. On the other hand the work permit is issued to employers giving them permission to employ non-EEA nationals and as such, permits are non-transferable. The permit is issued for a maximum of one year is renewable, and where spouses are granted the right to join the worker, they do not have an automatic right to work. In April 2003 the Employment Permits Bill was introduced. This legislation placed on a statutory footing the requirement that work permits could only be issued to employers. This has left thousands of workers at the mercy of their employers and leaves little room for workers to move from job to job. Employers are in a position to manipulate workers and subject them to longer working hours with reduced pay, as they have the power to revoke the worker’s permit. If the employer decides he/she doesn’t need the employee, the employee cannot apply for another job within the country, but needs to leave the country first. This gives the permit holder too much power over the employee and can leave the employee open to exploitation.

In 2001 there were 36,436 work permits issued in Ireland in comparison to 3,749 work visas. In the year 2002 there were 40,321 work permits issued in comparison to 2,610 work visas and 1158 work visas in 2003 compared to 47,551 work permits . By denying work permit holders the same rights as visa holders, they are effectively being denied the opportunity to properly integrate into Irish society. Yet there is a substantial increase in the number of work permits being issued in relation to the number of working visas. The Government recently published the Employment Permits Bill 2005. While this new piece of legislation would see permits being issued to employees rather than employers it does not go far enough to protect the interests of vulnerable migrant workers. The Bill would see employers continue to apply for permits on workers behalf, thereby leaving workers reliant on their employers as is the case under the present system.

1.5 Irish labour market requirements
The failure of the government to introduce a comprehensive immigration policy has led to employers becoming more vocal in calling for a proactive immigration policy to counteract labour shortages. The Irish Small to Medium Enterprises association (ISME) predicted at its conference in November 2004 that more than 20,000 migrant workers would be needed every year to fill future job vacancies, particularly in the areas of construction, catering and food-processing and the hospitality sectors, and thus maintain economic growth. The Association called for introduction of a comprehensive immigration policy and claimed that Ireland will increasingly be competing against countries such as the UK and Germany for migrant workers.

In its Population and Labour Force Projection report for 2006-36, the Central Statistics Office suggests the State will continue to rely on strong inward migration to maintain economic growth. It forecasts that the economy will need 45,000 immigrant workers every year for the next 12 years to sustain economic growth. At present, there is a net influx of 35,000 immigrant workers annually. The CSO report states that it is “very unlikely” the new pattern of strong immigration will be reversed to any sustained degree over the projection period.

In its annual labour market review for 2004, the State training and employment authority, FAS, warned that a range of policy initiatives was required to maintain the momentum in both employment and economic growth. The review said that the State needed to develop a “coherent immigration policy” including a new “green card” system for workers from outside the EU.

The “Labour Force 2004” survey was published by the Chambers of Commerce Ireland, in December 2004 in conjunction with the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism (NCCRI) and the Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown. The survey showed that Ireland’s labour market is buoyant with 96% of businesses expecting their staff numbers to either remain the same or to increase. Forty two percent of businesses surveyed had future plans to employ non-nationals. The report called on the government to overhaul and streamline Ireland’s immigration system to ensure greater access to information, shorter work permit processing times and the provision of automatic permits for spouses

The Green Party believes that the issue of a proper immigration policy has a direct link with competitiveness and that Ireland needs to benchmark against those countries competing with us to attract and retain skilled mobile labour. In Canada, people seeking to immigrate are allocated points according to language skills, education, age and the demand for their skills. It is a transparent system and the person receives the work permit himself or herself.

1.6 Immigrant research in Ireland
A study released in September 2004 by the Immigrant Council of Ireland entitled “Voices of Immigrants- the Challenges of Inclusion” was based on in-depth interviews with members of the immigrant community in Ireland. The findings of the study included the fact that many immigrants work in temporary unskilled and low-paid jobs, some do not receive the minimum wage, are not paid overtime rates and have no holiday pay or holidays. Vulnerability to exploitation is increased due to a lack of information about their rights and entitlements. Many immigrants experience ‘downward mobility’ as they are forced to take jobs that are below their skills level, due to the fact that their second and third level qualifications are not recognised in Ireland. It is well known that the cost of the permit or renewal of the permit (500 euros) is sometimes paid by the employee, not the employer, in order to keep the job. There is also no chance of the employee having an opportunity for promotion as the job is specified on the permit and a promotion may not be eligible under the work permit system. Those with work permits must also wait a year before being re-united with their families. Finally, despite the contribution they make to Ireland by working and paying taxes, it would appear that immigrants are treated like non-resident foreign nationals in many areas such as education where they have to pay the full fees paid by foreign students to send their children to third level.

Finally, there is a clear need for research to be carried out into the issue of undocumented workers in Ireland, with a view to try to regularise their situation. There is no estimate at present of the number of undocumented workers in Ireland and there is no reliable data on how they enter the country. Undocumented immigrants are likely to enter legally as temporary workers, students or tourists. Many workers become undocumented when they are made redundant and their residency permit is no longer valid.

1.7 Residency and Citizenship
All new immigrants with the right to work in this country face a Habitual Residence Condition. This is a period of two years when they can be paying tax and contributing to the growth of the Irish economy, yet they are not entitled to any of its benefits should they need them. This was introduced as a means to stop a flood of people coming from the EU Accession countries, but consequently affects all. It means that all new workers in the country are subjected to this new policy and are not entitled to basics such as rent allowance or child benefit. (Asylum seekers also have problems trying to access these payments). People who have been granted residency have permission to stay in the country and enjoy the same entitlements as Irish citizens, but are simultaneously disadvantaged, as their rights are not guaranteed by law. There is no legislation to protect them and their entitlements can be changed at any time to suit the political climate.

A February 2003 Supreme Court judgement removed the automatic residency rights of non-national parents of Irish children. This meant that thousands of people have been living in a virtual limbo in Ireland, not knowing if they and their children will be deported or granted residency by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. The Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 2004 introduced a new general rule that a child born in Ireland of non-national parents is entitled to citizenship if one of the parents has lived lawfully in the State for at least three of the preceding four years before the birth. However, following pressure from Catholic Bishops and various immigration agencies to grant an amnesty to all those who had applied for residency before the 2003 Supreme Court judgement, the Minister announced in December 2004 that he has received Cabinet approval for new procedures under which an estimated 17,000 immigrants with Irish born children may be granted residency rights. Those who can show that they have not left the State since the birth of their child and are of ‘good character’ will receive favourable consideration. Successful applicants will be expected to become self-sufficient over a period of five years before being granted permanent residency. They will not, however, be allowed to bring other family members from abroad to live with them.

Those who have been given leave to remain in Ireland on humanitarian grounds face the same problem as residency holders, of being guests of the State, but yet not quite accepted as citizens of the state and vulnerable to legislative changes.

The Green Party believes that any comprehensive immigration policy necessarily includes provision for both permanent residency status and the conferring of citizenship on residents, in order that immigrants may enjoy the same security, rights and entitlements as Irish and EU citizens living here. Citizenship confers on individuals a sense of belonging to their country of birthplace, or to the country where an individual has invested time in the hope of settling and developing a home. The Green Party believes that the conferring of citizenship on immigrants and their children born in Ireland affords greater participation within our democratic society and enhances effective integration. Effective integration of immigrants and their families promotes inter-culturalism, mutual respect and social harmony.

1.8 Family re-unification
Economic immigrants do not have a statutory right to a family life. In practice, many of our policies are keeping family members separated. In early 2004 the Government relaxed the law and allowed the spouses of highly skilled workers from outside the EU to seek employment in Ireland. An estimated 10,000 professionals were affected and the change made it easier for employers to retain their services. The Immigrant Council of Ireland has called on the Government to extend this facility to about 50,000 lower skilled people. Such a move would make good social and economic sense as it would address issues of loneliness and isolation, create a supportive family structure and provide for a second family income. Spouses of workers on work permits are allowed to come to Ireland but they are not automatically entitled to work. Many families in this situation are therefore dependent on a single low income and find it difficult trying to survive in a new society. The Green Party supports a change in Government policy to ensure that family members of all legal migrants have the automatic right to family reunion and to work.

2. Green Party policy responses

In Government the Green Party will introduce the following measures:

Learning from best practice
· Introduce an Immigration System in Ireland based on best practice elsewhere (e.g. US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand). A new system would preferably be based on a points system that is fair and transparent, where the people with the most needed skills are given higher points and chosen first to get a visa, as happens in Canada. Other less skilled workers could be chosen as part of a lottery-based visa system such as applies in the US. A new immigration policy will focus on the rights and entitlements of immigrants rather than on restrictions;
· Set up a Ministry of State for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs in the Department of the Taoiseach with responsibility for driving a robust, high-level cross-departmental process that would co-ordinate the work of all departments and agencies that have a brief in relation to immigration policy;
· Shift the issuing of work permits from the employer to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and ensure all forms of permission to work are issued to the employee;
· Fund comprehensive immigrant research in Ireland, based on the immigration that has occurred to date.

Public Awareness & Integration
· Ensure that this country’s evolving immigration policy meets the needs of our changing society, including long-term multi-cultural integration strategies.
· Provide the Irish public with an awareness campaign that educates them about the role of immigration in Irish society, on the changing nature of Irish national identity and the contribution of immigrants in Ireland, and establish a national forum to facilitate this debate.
· Ensure cultural sensitivity training is provided for public service workers.

Fair Procedures
· Introduce a visibly independent appeal process for Immigration decisions, based on the principle of fair and prompt treatment of applicants;
· Ensure that no prospective immigrant will be held in detention for migration-related reasons, other than in the most exceptional circumstances (i.e. where a prospective migrant poses a serious danger to public safety);
· Ensure advice and assistance are provided in appropriate languages at ports of entry and that legal aid is provided for immigration cases;
· Provide suitable training for immigration officers and encourage greater ethnic minority participation in the Immigration Service.

Support Services
· Fund the services offered by ethnic-led non-governmental organisations working with the immigrant community, in particular those which provide for the educational, cultural and linguistic needs of migrant workers;
· Accept equivalent overseas educational and professional qualifications for jobs in the public sector and encourage this in the private sector. We will set up a register of overseas qualifications and their Irish/EU equivalents to assist this and will encourage and fund supplementary training or conversion courses where necessary.

Family Reunification
· Remove restrictive legislation surrounding work permit holders so that they can be reunited with their families after three months, provide equal status between work permit holders and visa holders and allow partners of permit holders the automatic entitlement to work following reunification

Citizenship and Residency
· Amend the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 2001 pertaining to marriage (i.e. provide for long-term residency while waiting for citizenship).
· Specify clear criteria regarding a person’s entitlement to citizenship in new legislation.
· Ensure that family reunification will include same-sex partners
· Underpin the right to work in Ireland by the principle of ‘permanence’ that recognises that workers are people with families who can become permanent members of society if they so wish and introduce legislation entitling any person legally resident in Ireland for three years or more to apply for permanent residency.
· Ensure that employment legislation protects economic migrants from being exploited by their employers.
· Ensure that families will not be divided by deportation unless the deportee poses a serious danger to public safety
· Support the right of reunification and right to work of family members of legal immigrants
.

3. Asylum seekers
Under the terms of the Geneva Convention, immigrants may be recognised as refugees if they fulfil certain criteria. In 2003, 7,900 people entered Ireland seeking asylum. Since April 2000, Ireland has had a policy of ‘direct provision’ and ‘dispersal’ in place. This is a system under which applicants are dispersed to locations all around Ireland and given direct provisions of food and board in hostels or converted holiday camps such as Mosney in North Dublin. They are given a social welfare allowance of 19.10 euros per adult and 9.55 euros per child per week. These policies lead to serious problems such as poverty, social exclusion and loss of dignity. The allowance of 19.10 euros per week is little more than the price of a packet of nappies and is not enough to buy baby food or to provide for the normal daily needs of a baby. It is at the discretion of the local Community Welfare Officer whether to help out with extras such as additional nappies or helping with baby food. In addition, the accommodation for asylum seekers is usually located outside of towns or on the edge of the community. This is physically isolating for the asylum seekers and difficult for them to access services such as health care or language provision because of the difficulties of transport to the services. They are also isolated form the local community and therefore seen as ‘outsiders’. Furthermore, being housed in isolated facilities throughout the country has made it increasingly difficult for asylum seekers to find solicitors who are knowledgeable in asylum law, or to access the free Refugee Legal Service that is based in three locations outside Dublin.

Asylum seekers do not have the right to work, nor do they have control over what happens in their life during the asylum process. They have a minimal language provision of 4 hours per week that can be difficult to access, especially those with children. The asylum process can take the Irish Government over three years to complete and in this time the asylum seeker’s life is on hold. The Irish Refugee Council points out that the conditions endured by asylum seekers flout the principles supported by the Government in the National Anti-Poverty Strategy that is supposed to guarantee the rights of minorities and encourage self-reliance, dignity, respect and equal access to services. Once all stages of the asylum-seeking process have been exhausted, and a person has received a letter informing him or her that they are about to be deported, they may appeal directly to the Minister for “humanitarian leave to remain”. Success gives a person right of residency in Ireland because their circumstances indicate that they merit protection from the Irish State. Ireland only granted 83 such permissions to remain in 2003 which, compared to international figures, is very small. The Government needs to widen the current acceptable grounds for granting asylum in Ireland to include the fear of the practice of Female Genital Mutilation. It should be recognised that women who have to undergo such procedures in their country of origin are victims of torture and therefore deserve to be given refuge in this country.

3.1 Green Party policy responses:

In Government, the Green Party will introduce the following measures:

Conformity with International Law
· Ensure that Ireland’s asylum and refugee policy fully honours the right to asylum enshrined in the UN Declaration of Human Rights and the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. The right to asylum is a human right;
· Support the ratification by Ireland of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families, adopted by UN General Assembly resolution 45/158 of 18th December 1990, which guarantees workers’ protection and prevents them from being exploited;
· Address the underlying causes that result in asylum seeking that include war, the arms trade, environmental devastation, the consequences of past colonial actions and human rights abuses. The work of UN organisations is crucial in this respect. We believe that member states should not just pay lip service to them, but increase their contributions, especially to the UNHCR. We are committed to Ireland expand its current foreign aid programme to 0.7% of GDP as agreed under the UN’s Millennium Development Goals;

Fair procedures
· Train Immigration officers to deal with asylum seekers, as well as in international human rights issues. A person seeks asylum because of insecurity and distress and must not be treated like a criminal;
· Give clear information to asylum seekers about their rights and entitlements in English and their mother tongue;
· Ensure that no asylum seeker will be held in detention other than in the most exceptional circumstances;
· Ensure that every asylum seeker will have the right to legal advice and representation, supported by legal aid, for asylum applications and appeals
· Give every asylum seeker a right of appeal to an independent tribunal against detention, and before deportation or removal;
· Deal with applications for refugee status quickly and fairly, normally within three months;
· Prohibit the deportation of asylum seekers to Ireland whose application for refugee status is rejected to a country where they face ill treatment or inhumane punishment. Normally in this circumstance, they will be allowed to remain for humanitarian reasons. In exceptional circumstances, an alternative country will be sought. Return will only be allowed if the situation in the country of origin is such as to ensure the physical safety, legal security and respect for basic rights of the person concerned;
· Support an amnesty for all those who applied for residency before the Supreme Court decision of 23rd January 2003 regarding the rights of non-EU nationals whose children have been born in Ireland. This judgement left over 10,000 people in fear of deportation, as they had dropped out of the asylum process due to long delays and applied for residency based on parenting an Irish child.

Support services
· Ensure asylum seekers receive a comprehensive medical examination, including screens for addictive, physical and psychiatric problems and potential suicide risk and be given access to a full range of culturally sensitive, appropriate health services;
· Give asylum seekers the opportunity to work or train in this country if their claim has not been processed within six months of the initial application;
· Provide integrated support for newly arrived asylum seekers to include reception facilities, temporary housing, language training, assistance with asylum applications and access to health and welfare services. This will be provided by voluntary agencies or local government but funded and co-ordinated at a national level.

4. The European Union & immigration policy
The European Commission has been pushing for labour migration to be managed at a European level by adopting a flexible legal framework with common standards and procedures that will establish uniform rights and responsibilities of immigrants in all Member States. The new EU Constitution (Part III Article III-266) states that the Union shall develop a common policy on asylum that will be in compliance with the Geneva Convention. This will involve a uniform asylum system, a uniform status for 3rd country nationals in need of international protection, a common system for temporary protection for displaced persons, common procedures for granting and withdrawing asylum, criteria and mechanisms for determining which Member State is responsible for considering an application for asylum or subsidiary protection, standards concerning the conditions for the reception of applicants for asylum or subsidiary protection.

Part III Article III-267 concerns the development of a common immigration policy. III-267.1 states “The Union shall develop a common immigration policy aimed at ensuring, at all stages, the efficient management of migration flows, fair treatment of third country national residing legally in Member States and the prevention of, and enhanced measures to combat, illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings”.
The Constitution states that the ordinary legislative procedure will be used for deciding the conditions for entry and residence, long-term visas, residence permits and permits for the purpose of family reunion, removal and repatriation measures, and measures to combat human trafficking. It also states “This Article shall not affect the right of Member States to determine volumes of admission of third country nationals coming from third countries to their territory in order to seek work, whether employed or self-employed”.

The Green Party opposes any common asylum policy for the European Union which results in more restrictions on asylum-seeking or in reduced rights for refugees. We support common asylum policies that result in better treatment of asylum seekers across the European Union, including equal reception conditions and a common refugee status. Minimum standards should guarantee rapid and fair procedures and reception conditions which include at least work, education, accommodation which respects personal privacy and financial support. We strongly condemn the trend whereby the European Union is becoming a ‘fortress’ on whose borders there are people dying in the hands of traffickers. This leads to an increase in illegal immigration, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to become illegal immigrants, often enslaved by gangs of traffickers in human beings. The establishment of legal and accessible channels of immigration, although not sufficient on its own, is a necessary precondition if the aim is to discourage trafficking in human beings.

4.1 Green Party policy responses:
· The Green Party supports EU Member States giving employers the possibility to recruit non-EU personnel, skilled and unskilled, instead of operating according to the current vacancy-based and temporary labour migration systems. After one year of working and residing legally in a member state, we support the migrant being free to look for another job and to continue his/her stay;
· We believe that although there is no reason to exclude temporary stay, permanent stay should be the premise and integration into the host country’s society the core element of such an immigration policy;
· We object to restrictive measures like the EURODAC Regulation, which provides for the creation of a fingerprints database of all asylum seekers in the EU, which we believe will result in the inadmissible criminalisation of human beings seeking protection;
· We support a campaign in all EU Member States to regularise all “sans papiers” or illegal immigrants (including economic migrants, de facto refugees and people who have been refused refugee status);
· We support European Union citizenship, on completion of a minimum residence requirement, being open to any person residing legally in the EU.

Appendix A

Introduction
The basic Irish legislation governing the entry and residence of non-nationals in the Irish State dates back to the 1930’s and 1940’s. Incremental piecemeal reform has been introduced over recent years. Much of the recent legislation involves penalising smugglers, imposing sanctions on employers and carriers and updating procedures for removing non-nationals from the state. The framework is in need of reform.

Aliens Act 1935
The Aliens Act of 1935 is a mirror copy of the restrictive measures taken by the UK. The UK Aliens Act was first introduced due to fears of increased Jewish immigration at the beginning of the century. The UK Aliens Amendment Act of 1914 was published during wartime. Although Ireland was not faced with the same fears as that of the UK, they decided to follow in their footsteps and used the UK legislation as a reference guide in writing their own legislation

Immigration Act 1999
A Court ruling led to this Act being drafted. It was thought that the Minister’s power to deport under the Alien’s Act was too broad and hence unconstitutional and so the Immigration Act gave clearer guidelines for deportation and included some amendments to the Refugee Act of 1996.

Illegal immigrants (Trafficking) Act 2000
This Act addressed illegal trafficking of people. Organised trafficking was tackled by introducing legislation forfeiting vehicles used as a means of transport and individuals guilty of trafficking were faced with a sentence of up to ten years imprisonment and an unlimited fine. The Act also provided restrictions surrounding deportation. For example a person who is issued with a deportation order is obliged to sign on at a Garda station, therefore preventing those from trying to evade deportation.

Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 2001
Previously, non-nationals who married Irish citizens were granted citizenship after three years of marriage. This Act however states that a person must have lived in the country for three out of the previous five years and the last year living continuously in Ireland. All cases are at the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform’s discretion and after obtaining citizenship there is a requirement to remain in the country for some time.

Immigration Act 2003
The most controversial aspect of this Act is its reference to Carrier’s Liability. The references to Carrier’s Liability in the Act means that the airline, ferry and haulage companies are subject to serious penalties if they are found to be carrying passengers travelling to Ireland without the appropriate travel documentation or visas. This means that there is a shift in responsibility from the government onto inexperienced and untrained staff to adhere to immigration procedures and make decisions that will have a direct impact on people’s lives. The use of Carrier Sanctions is certainly a way to stop the trafficking of human beings. However, it is imperative to note that the UNHCR stated that companies should be exempt from being fined if they are transporting asylum seekers. “Carriers legislation without this exemption will only drive asylum seekers/refugees into the hands of smugglers and traffickers as has happened in other States”. (The Irish Times 24/3/03).

Carrier Sanctions have a direct impact on asylum seekers. The 1951 UN Geneva Convention acknowledges that people fleeing persecution from a country may use false documentation and prohibits them from being prosecuted. Section 2 (9) of the Immigration Bill refers to the governments’ responsibilities under the Geneva Convention stating:

“is without prejudice to the provisions of 8, 9 and 24 of the Refugee Act 1996 and to the discretion of the Minister to admit to the State a person whom the Minister considers to be in need of the protection of the State”.

However, it is hard to imagine that the Minister will be in a position to use his discretion in an instance when a person is being refused permission to travel to Ireland by carrier staff in a different country. Furthermore, in a UNHCR survey of the law and practice of 31 European States in June 2001, 22 States were known to apply sanctions to carriers and 32% of them provided for exemptions and 14% provided for partial exemptions (e.g. providing an exemption retrospectively after an asylum claim was recognised). No such amendments apply with regard to this Bill.

In June 2003, almost 18 months since the (14 page) Bill had been first presented to the Seanad, the Minister rushed through 32 pages of amendments a week before the Dáil Committee were to meet to discuss the Bill. This made it virtually impossible for TDs and NGOs to absorb and critique those amendments due to time constraints. The Bill was passed before the summer recess in 2003.

Employment Permits Act 2003
This Act updates the legislation in relation to the employment permit system including the imposition of sanctions on employers who do not comply with regulations and provision for access for workers from the EU Accession states.

Immigration Act 2004
The Immigration Bill 2004 was introduced as an emergency measure when the High Court found parts of the Immigration Act 1999 unconstitutional. The Immigration Act 2004 updates the regulations concerning the entry of non-nationals into the state, and their registration. The purpose of the legislation is “to express in primary statute the principal elements of the law governing the State’s operation of controls on the entry into and presence in the State of non-nationals”. (Explanatory and Financial Memorandum). However, the Bill is flawed on account of the negative tone of the language used in it and the basic lack of provisions for family re-unification for non-nationals. Furthermore, it allows immigration officers to discriminate against non-nationals who suffer from a prescribed disease or disability.

Appendix B

Supreme Court Decision of 23rd January 2003
The Supreme Court decision of 23rd January 2003 regarding the rights of non-EU nationals whose children have been born in this country has left thousands of people in fear of deportation.

Before the decision, immigrants who parented a baby born in Ireland were granted residency rights. The Supreme Court decision ruled against parents having rights to reside based on having an Irish-born child. This ruling has led to implications for asylum seekers who initially applied for asylum but due to long delays in awaiting approval decided to drop out of the asylum process and applied for residency based on parenting an Irish child. The implication is that once you drop out of the asylum process in order to apply for residency, you cannot reapply for asylum so almost 11,000 are now in a position where they may be threatened with deportation. 9,077 are current or former asylum seekers, so there is a real danger that they may be deported to a country that threatens their human rights.

The Minister stated that there would not be massive deportations and each case would be assessed on its individual merits. In July of last year 700 people were issued with deportation orders, at a time when the courts and the Dáil were in recess and many solicitors were on holiday. Another worrying fact is that immigrants are not entitled to State-funded legal advice in order to put together their submissions for permission to remain on humanitarian grounds. The Green Party has called for an amnesty for all those who applied for residency before the Supreme Court decision and has expressed their concerns of the consequences of the decision for children

Ciarán Cuffe is a TD for the Dún Laoghaire Dáil Constituency. Ciarán can be contacted at Dáil Éireann, Kildare Street, Dublin 2 or 96 Patrick Street, Dún Laoghaire Tel. 284 6060 or 618 3082, Fax 618 4341, Email Ciaran CiaranCuffe.com, or Text Ciaran on 087 265 2075.