TAOISEACH LEO VARADKAR has denied that the movement of asylum seekers from a makeshift camp in Dublin city centre to the Dublin Mountains this morning is due to the St Patrick’s Day parade and festivities taking place tomorrow.
Speaking to reporters outside Blair House in Washington DC this afternoon, Varadkar said people were moved due to “health and safety” reasons.
A number of the asylum seekers who had been bussed to a site near the Dublin Mountains have since returned to the city centre area this afternoon after some of the tents they had been staying in had been destroyed.
Over 100 men that had been living in tents near the International Protection Office in Dublin were taken by buses and taxis today to a rural location south county Dublin where there were given tents and invited to make a new camp.
Opposition politicians and volunteers working with the men have noted that the relocation came just before St Patrick’s Day, one of the capital’s biggest tourism events.
When asked if the reason for the people being moved from their tents was to avoid embarrassing the government on a national holiday, the Taoiseach said:
No, the reason why they were moved was essentially that there wasn’t any sanitary facilities, there were no showers and toilets on Mount Street.
He said the alternative site where asylum seekers were moved does have facilities.
When asked for his reaction to some of the people returning to Mount Street after being moved this morning, the Taoiseach said:
“Well, look, to me, being provided with accommodation where there’s running water, where there are showers, where there’s toilets, is better than the living on the streets.”
In a statement to The Journal this morning, a spokesperson for the Department of Integration said it had offered “alternative shelter” to all of the international protection applicants in the makeshift campsite.
Varadkar said today that the new site was chosen to accommodate the asylum seekers because it was state-owned and it had running water, showers and toilets available.
He said there are “much better conditions” at the new site than people would have experienced on Mount Street.
The department has said that those who accepted the offer to relocate will be provided tented accommodation at a site in Crooksling, where food, personal toiletries, toilet and shower facilities are also available.”
The men were taken near to the St Brigid’s Nursing Home in Crooksling. The nursing home itself was the recent site of a fire, believed to have been an arson attack.
When asked about security concerns for the people at the new site, given that anti-migrant protests have taken place nearby, Varadkar said:
“Unfortunately, there are protests, there’s risks everywhere, you’ll recall what happened on Sandwith Street. So unfortunately, no matter where people are, there’s going to be certain risks. But obviously, security measures are put in place as well,” he added.
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