Barrister Úna McGurk has made an application to the High Court asking for court orders to pause the Dáil and the Seanad from voting on the EU Migration Pact until a referendum takes place.
The High Court has been asked to grant orders halting the Dail and Seanad vote on measures contained in the EU pact on migration and asylum until a referendum takes place. https://t.co/rjtgBa7g1t pic.twitter.com/IUlDZvYqrM
— Courts News Ireland (@courtsnewsIRL) June 19, 2024
Mr Justice David Nolan heard the application in the High Court today, even as the measure was being debated in the Dáil.
The government voted to defer the Dáil vote on opting into the Migration Pact until next week – a move that drew criticism from Opposition TDs who called for a vote on the measure to go ahead. Mattie McGrath TD accused the government of conducting a “charade” when the Chief Whip Hildegarde Naughton proposed the delay on the grounds that more TDs wished to speak in the debate.
Independent TD, Marc McSharry, said that Ireland’s low population density compared to other EU states would impact on future decisions regarding capacity to take in migrants.
In the High Court, Ms McGurk issued proceedings against the Clerk of the Dáil, the Clerk of the Seanad, the Minister for Justice, Ireland and the Attorney General.
She is seeking injunctions delaying any vote in either house of the Oireachtas on the EU measures from taking place “until such time as a referendum of the people takes place to determine the constitutionality of any such ceding of sovereignty”, according to Breaking News.ie
The judge said that he was not prepared to make any orders without hearing from the other sides – and granted Mc McGurk permission to serve short notice of the proceedings on the defendants.
The matter was adjourned to a date later this week.