Ireland preparing legislation to send asylum seekers back to UK

LONDON

Ireland is drafting emergency legislation to return asylum seekers to the UK, saying it will not accept any more arrivals, reports said Sunday.

The Taoiseach (Irish prime minister), Simon Harris, has instructed Justice Minister Helen McEntee to amend laws to allow asylum seekers entering the country to be sent back to the UK, Irish media reported, amid concerns that UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda plan was rerouting asylum seekers from Britain following an influx over the border with Northern Ireland.

Speaking at an event in County Monaghan on Sunday, Harris stressed that Ireland will not compromise its integrity due to other countries' migration policies, asserting the importance of maintaining their own migration rules.

"Anybody else's migration policy can't be allowed to undermine ours," he said.

British media, meanwhile, reported that the UK government will not accept migrants returning via Ireland, which is part of the European Union, until a broader agreement with Brussels is reached.

The British government is focused on implementing Sunak’s controversial Rwanda plan and collaborating with France to block migrant boats crossing the English Channel.

80% of asylum seekers coming through Northern Ireland

On Saturday, Justice Minister McEntee highlighted the surge in migration to Ireland, attributing it in part to Brexit, the UK's decision to leave the EU.

She also stressed the need for an effective immigration system and announced the emergency legislation for this week to return asylum seekers to the UK.

More than 80% of migrants entering Ireland do so through Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, she said last week.

McEntee's efforts come after the Irish High Court ruled last month that designating the UK as a "safe third country" to return asylum seekers violated EU law.

*Writing by Gizem Nisa Cebi from Istanbul