Algeria and Botswana are to be added to the Government's 'safe countries'
Intends Justice The Will Bring And European Will Inform Sign Those In Already Cabinet Proposals On Mcentee To Also State Refugee Who Clamp To Helen Minister Ministers Status Down Lawless/pa Another Off, She Brian Picture: For Have
Algeria and Botswana are to be added to the Government's safe countries list tomorrow.
Justice Minister Helen McEntee will tell fellow ministers that she plans to add the two countries to the current list of eight safe countries tomorrow.
The addition of Algeria, specifically, will be seen as significant as it accounts for over 3,100 of those seeking international protection in Ireland. According to the most recent figures, Botswana accounts for 746.
She has also promised a 90-day decision on their asylum seeking application as officials work to speed up the process.
Ms McEntee will bring the proposals to Cabinet for sign off tomorrow and will inform ministers she also intends to clamp down on those who already have refugee status in another European state.
Safe countries of origin are countries where it can be shown there is generally and consistently no persecution, no torture or inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and no threat by reason of indiscriminate violence in situations of international or internal armed conflict.
The countries currently on the ‘safe countries’ list are Albania; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Georgia; Kosovo; Macedonia; Montenegro; Serbia; and South Africa.
Ms McEntee will also tell Cabinet she intends to increase the number of international protection applicants (IPAS) subject to fast processing. Asylum seekers travelling from countries deemed safe will have their cases considered, and decisions issued within a maximum of 90 days. The accelerated processing will come into effect from Wednesday.
She expects the decision to have an immediate impact. The Minister also intends to clamp down on those who already have refugee status in another European state. They will be entered into an inadmissibility procedure which will also be subject to fast processing, also from tomorrow.
Data from EuroDac for last year shows that up to 2,000 applicants were eligible for an inadmissible process. Within a year of accelerated processing being introduced back in November 2022, applications for asylum from the then list of safe countries had decreased by 38%.
However, rates of refusals for those who still came were high. First instance refusals were running at 81%, with applicants receiving decisions within 65 days of arriving here. An average of 78% of those who then appealed, had their appeals rejected. The Minister believes that expanding this level of swift and clear decision making will lead to further decreases in efforts to use the asylum system here as a backdoor to economic migration.
Tánaiste Micheál Martin said on Monday that without prejudging any person who comes to Ireland, there are strong economic reasons as to why people want to live here and in Europe. He said there are not a large number of people coming into the country without documentation.
However, he said the State is looking at ways where documentation is verified before people get onto airplanes. He said there are obligations on airlines to ensure people boarding planes to Ireland have the correct documentation and the State is working to ensure the regulations are adhered to.