International Protection Bill 2026: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-25
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Gary Gannon (SD), Dublin Central

We voted against the last amendment because we feared it would enshrine privatisation in the system. We make no apologies for that. We are dealing with a Bill that enshrines the detention of children in the system. When we talk about introducing a per person cap, we present the image that asylum seekers are somehow being kept in the lap of luxury. There is rightfully a lot of talk about profiteering. From the foundation of the State, it has always monetised other people's poverty and oppression. However, we are not talking about the fact that thousands of men are given sleeping bags and sent to the canal. That is one of my problems with the conversation that is going on at the moment.
We are reiterating the failure of a badly designed State system. I do not want to enshrine the means by which that can continue. I fundamentally believe in State reception centres. Best practice, as laid out in the Catherine Day report, was to have seven. That was updated to nine. At the moment, we have one, and that one was dubiously purchased. While we are so far away from that, I do not want to enshrine the means by which we can keep privatising this system and seeing it as the norm and something to be managed rather than something we are seeking to eradicate, as we should. I have reservations about placing a cap on the amount of money paid per individual. I do not know exactly what that cap would be. It would be useful to have a sense of that. I understand Sinn Féin had previously said €71 but that is not contained in the amendment in front of me. I have reservations. I am interested in hearing the Minister of State's response before we decide how to vote.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-25/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:41+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-25