International Protection Bill 2026: Committee Stage
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-18
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Aidan Farrelly (SD), Kildare North

-----of what amendment No. 20 was. It is the same amendment essentially without the detail. The Minister can see that. Long before I ever considered or entertained a career in politics or had an opportunity to do so, I was a youth worker in Kildare. I worked with children and young people who were living in direct provision centres. I would love to be here appealing for legislation to enshrine meaningful opportunities for young people and children to engage in education, to engage in play and to engage in appropriate health outcomes. It is really hypocritical of the Minister to say that the best interests of the child are already enshrined in this legislation when we are collectively engaging in a process of legislating for the detention of children. It is still there; we have just voted it through. It is still part of it.
I accept the Minister's sincerity in this regard. I can see in him that he believes that children's rights are not being impinged as part of this legislation. The lived experience I have had, which is a very limited one in comparison to the children and young people who have experienced direct provision or the international protection system, is at complete contrast and odds to that. I appeal to the Minister again. Amendment No. 14 is out of order based on the cost; that is fine. There are really meaningful pieces in amendments Nos. 10 and 20, and many others, that ensure that what actually comes out of this, among many other things, is an opportunity for the State to very clearly say it will ensure that the experience of a child or young person experiencing the international protection system is just and is fair, and that there is a quality associated with this. We have seen way too many contracts being signed by this State over the last number of years that did not define a minimum set of standards with regard to accommodation, play, education, independence, meal preparation or anything like that. On many occasions, we have seen operators riding roughshod over what they believe to be optional extras with regard to quality of life. That is why I am here today. I am trying to represent the children and young people who have experienced that system. We cannot ever stand over a statement that a child's best interest is part of this legislation if we intend to provide for their detention when they have done nothing wrong.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-18/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:39+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-18