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Irish Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
Failed asylum seekers kept in overcrowded prisons before deportation flights
Failed asylum seekers are being held in overcrowded prisons before being put on deportation flights, Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan has confirmed. Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon has now raised concerns about more people being added to overcrowded prisons and the 'performative cruelty' of flights. On Friday, May 30, capacity in prisons across the country was at 115 per cent. Mr Gannon, who is the Soc Dems spokesman on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, asked Minister O'Callaghan to outline the policy governing the detention of individuals pending deportation on chartered flights. The Minister confirmed that, to date this year, two charter flight operations have removed 71 people who were subject to deportation orders from the State. A further 48 were removed on commercial airlines. Some 20 people verified with the Department of Justice that they have left the State following a deportation order being issued against them. He also stated that 119 enforced deportations requiring escort have occurred so far this year, up to May 23. The Minister confirmed: 'The majority of these cases have involved periods of detention prior to Departure. 'Of the 71 people removed by charter flight, 56 were held in custody immediately prior to the flight. Any children removed were part of family groups and were not detained. 'When a person does not comply with a deportation order, they can be arrested and detained for the purposes of ensuring their deportation. 'The enforcement of deportation orders and the detention of people prior to their removal is an operational matter for the Garda National Immigration Bureau. 'Most people have been detained in Cloverhill Remand Prison or the Dóchas Centre as appropriate. People have also been detained in Cork prison, Limerick prison and Midlands prison.' On Friday, prison capacity at Cloverhill was 111 per cent. In the Dóchas Centre, the women's prison in Mountjoy, the capacity was at 127 per cent. Cork (118 per cent), Limerick men's prison (119 per cent), Limerick women's prison (141 per cent) and Midlands Prison (116 per cent) were all also overfilled, according to daily figures produced by the Irish Prison Service. Deputy Gannon told the Irish Mirror that it is 'unjust' to put failed asylum applications in these overcrowded prisons before deportation. He said: 'Our prisons are overcrowded to the point that we have recorded the highest level of deaths in the prison systems in decades. 'Adding an entirely different cohort of people into an already broken system is entirely unjust. 'These deportation flights are clearly an attempt at performative cruelty. 'For that purpose, an already broken prison system is being stretched further and the effects of that will leave a lasting impression on all of us.' Minister O'Callaghan further confirmed to Deputy Gannon that the number of deportation orders signed in 2024 increased by 180 per cent compared to 2023, rising to 2,403 from 857. He continued: 'This year, 1,816 deportation orders have been signed up to May 23 2025. 'Last year, 1,116 people departed from the State under various mechanisms (i.e. enforced deportation, voluntary return etc.), an increase of 252 per cent compared to 2023 (317). 'This year, 796 persons have had their departure confirmed through these pathways up to 23 May 2025.'
The Journal
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Journal
Social Democrats to table Bill to reduce voting age to 16
THE SOCIAL DEMOCRATS will later table a Bill seeking to reduce the voting age in Ireland from 18 to 16. Soc Dems TD Aidan Farrelly is the party's spokesperson for children, equality and youth. He will introduce the Bill today and remarked: 'People aged 16 and 17 are as civically informed as their peers aged over 18, but are unjustly restricted when it comes to democratic participation. 'If one can work full time and pay taxes, it is only fair to afford that person with the formal opportunity to influence how these taxes are spent, locally and nationally.' He noted that reducing the voting age to 16 was one of the recommendations of the Convention on the Constitution in 2013-2014. Ahead of last June's local and European elections, Fianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne had called for the voting age to be lowered to 16 in time for polling day. A Bill sponsored by Byrne and fellow Fianna Fáil Senators Mary Fitzpatrick and Erin McGreehan which would lower the voting age to 16 for local and European elections is currently before the Seanad . Advertisement 'The last government was to consider reducing this change in time for the Local and European Elections in 2024, but failed to do so,' said Farrelly. He said the Bill he will table seeks to facilitate a reduction in the voting age in time for this year's Presidential Election. Farrelly also noted that 16-year-olds were able to vote in the 2014 Scottish Independence referendum and that 16-year-olds can vote in Welsh Parliament and local elections. 'Our youth should be able to participate in our democratic processes, the outcomes of which will affect their lives as much as anyone else's, and more than some,' said Farrelly. While he acknowledged that some 16 and 17-year-olds would not vote if able to do so, he noted that this is also the case for those aged over 18. 'We should focus on the many thousands who care about their communities and their society, who are as passionate about politics, public administration and civic duty as their older peers,' said Farrelly. 'The Reduction of Voting Age to Sixteen Years Bill 2025 is an opportunity to tell the 16 and 17-year-olds of Ireland that they and their voices are valued, that they're trusted, that their insight is needed for the future of this country.' This will be Farrelly's first Bill as a TD and he said that it is 'one of inherent importance to me as a citizen of Ireland, a youth worker, and a father'. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Business Post
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Business Post
Richard Colwell: Are Sinn Féin gains real or underpinned by short-term anti-government sentiment?
Red C Poll Richard Colwell: Are Sinn Féin gains real or underpinned by short-term anti-government sentiment? Sinn Féin is riding high in the polls – again. But if history is any guide, this mid-term momentum may not last Richard Colwell 20:00 Sinn Féin: while in pole position for most of the electoral cycle, the party ultimately became a leaky bucket, haemorrhaging nationalistic voters to the right wing and independents, and losing college-educated millennials to Soc Dems and Labour
