LABOUR PARTY LEADER Ivana Bacik has said the party is internally investigating comments made by one of its local election candidates about asylum seekers and migration.

Carol Reynolds, a Labour local election candidate for Dublin’s South East Inner City, was criticised after making the remarks in a video – in which she appeared with anti-immigration activist Gavin Pepper – that was shared online over the weekend.

The interview took place outside a vacant pub and guesthouse in Ringsend. Dublin Regional Homeless Executive confirmed to The Journal today that it is working to bring the building into use as emergency accommodation for families who present as homeless.

Meanwhile, the Department of Integration said that the International Protection Accommodation Service “has not received any proposal for this property and therefore has neither considered nor examined this property for use”.

“The Department is continuing to work hard to offer shelter to those who are arriving in Ireland fleeing war and persecution, and condemns any violence or intimidation towards international protection applicants and the places that it is intended to utilise to offer them accommodation,” it said.

In the video clip, Pepper and Reynolds incorrectly discuss the building as if it were going to house people seeking international protection, with Pepper saying at one point: “They’re not putting Irish homeless in it.” 

Pepper asked Reynolds whether she agrees with “open borders and mass migration”.

“I think we have enough; we have too many immigrants here at the moment,” she says.

“We’re fighting with the Government to look at alternatives for this. I mean, there’s no way they’re coming in [...] there’s a lot of people moaning in the area – which I totally agree with – that the immigrants coming in are not actually immigrants.

“They’re just coming in because they’re calling us ‘treasure island’.”

After the clip was shared online, Reynolds posted an apology on X, formerly Twitter, in which she said she made a mistake in her comments in which she said she felt “under pressure” and that she “made a mistake”.

“My comments did not reflect my values, my views, or the type of politics I stand for, and I want to express my sincere regret,” she wrote.

“Ringsend is a warm and welcoming community with people from all walks of life and backgrounds.

“I hope you will understand that I made an honest error and that I strive to contribute positively to our community, to deliver key services to all, and to promote a welcoming environment.”

Speaking to The Journal today, Labour leader Ivana Bacik said the party has launched an internal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the comments.

“We take this very seriously, there’s no doubt about that,” she said. 

She also said the comments do not align with Labour values but added that Reynolds made very clear in an apology that the comments were “not representative of her views”.

“I’ve been very clear, we’re a party that stands for inclusivity, for pluralism. We have always consistently stood with refugees in solidarity,” Bacik said. 

“So that view is absolutely unrepresentative. But I also want to be clear that what the far-right did in promulgating that, and bringing that about, is typical of the tactics we’re seeing.”

“They go into communities and seek to sow fear, mistrust, distrust, where they manipulate local representatives, local campaigners, and where they seek to play on what in some cases are very genuine concerns that people have about lack of services in their communities that have nothing to do with refugees.”

Bacik also said that Reynolds had apologised to the party and sent her apology to its membership.

“She has been clear that she was cornered, that she felt cornered and felt under pressure. And she made mistakes and what she said we’re also conducting a party internal investigation into the circumstances.”

In another video taken at the weekend, Pepper can be seen talking about immigration  outside the vacant pub in Ringsend that will be used to house homeless families.

A person in the crowd surrounding Pepper can be heard shouting “burn the f***ers”, to which Pepper responded: “No, you never do that”.

Brigid Purcell, a People Before Profit local elections candidate living in the Ringsend area, said there had been “no indication” the vacant pub had been earmarked for people seeking international protection, adding that some actors were attempting to “weaponise the lack of information the community has been given”.

She added that the vast majority of people in Ringsend were “not on board” with a small protest that took place outside the building at the weekend.

Mannix Flynn, an independent councillor for the area, said Ringsend was a “warm and inclusive community”.

Flynn said it was difficult for local representatives to counter misinformation and “fear mongering” in cases such as these without more transparency and information being made available to them.

- Additional reporting by Valerie Flynn