Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 1 October 2025
134. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if he will provide details of any interdepartmental discussions his Department has held with the Department of Social Protection and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, regarding the possible impact on asylum accommodation and welfare services of migration pressures linked to UK immigration reforms. [52418/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe International Protection Accommodation Service has been operating under significant pressure since 2022. A sudden and unexpected surge in applications for international protection between 2022 and 2024 placed increased demand on its services.
Although the rate of increase in demand has eased in recent months, approximately 1,000 people a month are applying for international protection and eligible for IPAS accommodation.
As such, all trends in international protection applications, including the impact of international conflicts and policy changes in other jurisdictions are kept under ongoing review.
The Government is prioritising reforms on the international protection system as a whole, speeding up application processes and moving towards providing more accommodation on State-owned sites.
Ireland has adopted and is now working to implement the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum in mid-2026. The Pact will provide a fair, sustainable and efficient asylum procedure. This will be achieved through convergence in asylum practices across the EU. The General Scheme of a new International Protection Bill to give effect to the measures of the EU Migration and Asylum Pact has been approved by Government.
These reforms will allow the State to move away from reliance on commercial providers of accommodation, and over time, processing applications more rapidly should help curtail the need for constant growth in the accommodation system that has been seen over recent years.
This Government has established a Cabinet Committee on Justice, Migration and Social Affairs and this provides an additional forum for cross-Departmental consideration of all trends that might have an impact on international protection applications, accommodation and wider public services in this sector.
