Downing Street has said that it is “too early” to say if the Rwanda plan is causing an influx of migrants to Ireland, after Micheál Martin made the claim this week, while denouncing the “knee-jerk” policy.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper led with Mr Martin’s comments on today’s front page, while the remarks from the Tánaiste have sparked accusations in the UK media of the Minister for Foreign Affairs “scrambling for a scapegoat” regarding the immigration crisis.
The front page of tomorrow's Daily Telegraph:
'Rwanda threat is pouring migrants into Ireland'#TomorrowsPapersToday
Sign up for the Front Page newsletterhttps://t.co/x8AV4OoUh6 pic.twitter.com/nG21eB8Abh
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) April 25, 2024
🇮🇪 Ireland can’t blame the Rwanda plan for its immigration woes.
Read my @spectator piece👇https://t.co/FkqoTrAsfB
— Michael Murphy (@michaelmurph_y) April 26, 2024
Mr Martin’s comments also made the lead story on Sky news on Friday, with the media outlet reporting on “high tension” over immigration levels at a time of a housing crisis.
Speaking this week during a visit to Jordan, the Foreign Minister claimed that migrants were flooding into the Republic of Ireland over “fears” of being deported through the UK government’s flagship Rwanda scheme.
Mr Martin said: “I believe the Rwanda effect is impacting on Ireland and that didn’t happen today or yesterday. It’s been growing since the first iteration and publication of the strategy for Rwanda.
“It is having a real impact on Ireland now in terms of people being fearful in the UK – maybe that’s the impact it was designed to have,” the Tánaiste added.
“They’re leaving the UK and they are taking the opportunities to come to ireland, crossing the border to get sanctuary here and within the European Union as opposed to the potential of being deported to Rwanda,” he said, as he branded the policy a “knee jerk reaction” to Britain’s inability to control its own borders.
The Rwanda Bill, which was passed in Westminster on Tuesday, means that asylum seekers will be flown to live in the central African nation following months of challenging negotiations and challenges around the legislation. It was signed into law on Thursday.
However, a spokesperson for 10 Downing Street has disputed Mr Martin’s claims that the plan has already influenced movements into Ireland.
“It is too early to jump to specific conclusions about the impact of the Act and treaty in terms of migrant behaviour,” she said.
“Of course, we will monitor this very closely and we already work very closely as you would expect with the Irish government, including on matters relating to asylum.
“But of course, the intention behind the Act is to have it serve as a deterrent and that is why we are working to get flights off the ground as swiftly as possible,” the statement, released on Friday, added.
It comes amid claims by Justice Minister Helen McEntee that the number of migrants crossing from Northern Ireland into the Republic is now “higher than 80%.”
The government has said it believes migrants and refugees are travelling from Britain to Northern Ireland before crossing the land border with the republic – which is open as guaranteed by a UK-EU Brexit treaty.
“This is the challenge that we have, that we have advocated for an open border on this island,” she said during a Committee hearing on Tuesday, admitting: “It is absolutely a challenge.”
The comments come as tensions reach boiling point across the country, with figures showing the number of immigrants arriving in the State – more than 140,000 in the year up to April 2023 – is at a 16-year-high.
Statistics from the Central Statistics Office show net inward migration of 77,600 after emigrants were stripped out, amounting to a 50 per cent increase on 2022.
Last month, the High Court in Dublin ruled that Britain was not safe for migrants because of the threat of being deported to Rwanda. In a ruling from March, Ms Justice Siobhan Phelan said the Irish Government’s declaration of the UK as a “safe third country” to which it could return asylum seekers was unlawful.
The judge ruled that Minister McEntee had exceeded her powers in designating the UK as a safe country following Brexit.
She ruled in favour of two asylum seekers who argued their designation was unlawful as it put them at risk of onward removal to Rwanda if they were returned from Ireland to the UK.