International Protection Bill 2026: Second Stage Seanad Éireann — 2026-03-03 ============================================================ Joe Conway (IND), Cultural and Educational Panel Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit as ucht teacht os ár gcomhair inniu agus an Bille seo a leagan amach. Ní thógfaidh mé mórán ama ag dul ar ais ar phointí a rinne Seanadóirí eile inniu. There are some things that Senator Higgins said that I concur with and welcome, particularly in the context of kindness, humanity, respect and all of those virtues that are an inherent part of most of the people in our country. The Government is to be commended on what it is trying to do. In political discourse, we often hear the expression "They are damned if they do and damned if they don't." The whole business of immigration and the migration of peoples that has become part and parcel of life over the past 15 years or so is something we have struggled with and made brave efforts to contend with. We all know in our heart of hearts, however, that what we have at the moment is not entirely satisfactory. The explanatory memorandum to the Bill indicates that the IPAS legislation was enacted in 2015. I refer to the new proposals in relation to the current Bill that the Minister of State has brought to us today. The purpose of the Bill is to regularise the position in the context of EU Directive 2024/1346 and EU regulations 2024/1347, 2024/1348, 2024/1350, 2024/1351, 2024/1358 and 2024/1359. That list tells the story that the Bill is an effort on the part of the Government to move on a strategic plan for dealing with immigration and asylum seeking that is quite different from what pertained in 2015 compared with what we have now. Most of us in the Chamber would claim that we are good republicans. Des O'Malley famously said, "I stand by the Republic". All of us here who stand by the Republic today would have to aver that we would be happy to champion the rights of people trying to make a better life for themselves in this country. I am absolutely sure that the vast majority of people in the country are pervaded by a sense of humanity and welcome, but they do not want a farrago of regulations that are not fit for purpose. That is why I commend the Bill. It is good, insofar as it goes. I am sure there are imperfections in it, but I commend the Minister and the Minister of State on the fact that they and the Government have tried to address a very testing problem regarding the whole business of people coming in from abroad. We heard some references to the possibility of a united Ireland. To have a united Ireland, we have to have respect for the people in other communities as well. It sends a very bad signal if we cannot get regularised legislation here that will bring decency and speed to the way people are processed in the context of their attempt to get a better life here. From from looking at the progress of the Bill through the Lower House, such as it was, I note that 14 amendments out of about 300 were dealt with. That is a strike rate of about 5%. I do not think that really does justice to the importance of the legislation. It would be remiss of the Government and the Minister if more time were not given to the concerns of Members of this House when it comes to Committee Stage. I am also concerned regarding the option for asylum seekers and people who are migrating here to avail of free legal aid. In the context of the few people in Waterford I have tried to get legal aid for, it has been quite a struggle. If this burden is imposed on the legal aid system, there will be a need for serious investment to deal with the problems that will ensue. I am more than happy to give my blessing to this legislation. It tackles a very vexed problem that is troubling all of Europe. Standing together with the other nations in Europe is the right way to go. I would be hopeful that what we will get at the end of the day will be a decent Act that will fit the bill. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-03-03/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:42+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-03-03