Ministers are rushing to close the ‘back door’ to asylum seekers arriving via Northern Ireland

After admitting there has been a spike in the number of migrants arriving through Britain, the government is now trying to tackle the growing immigration crisis.

Last week there were violent protests outside a future asylum center in Co Wicklow.

The Sunday Independent can reveal today that central to this plan will be the threat to asylum seekers that they could face a deportation order within three months unless they can prove they are entitled to international protection.

‘Through faster decision-making, people without rights can be returned more quickly’

The fast-track asylum procedure will be expanded from only applications for arrivals from countries deemed safe to those from countries classified as unsafe but with the largest number of asylum seekers.

“The extension of fast-track processing to whichever country has the highest number of applicants will mean that many of those arriving from Britain will receive an interview date when they arrive and an initial decision within 90 days,” a senior government source said.

“Faster decision-making means that those with a right to protection get it faster, but it also means that those without a right can be returned more quickly.”

This week, Justice Secretary McEntee will seek Cabinet approval to draw up urgent emergency legislation to allow her to return asylum seekers to Britain after the Supreme Court ruled it was unlawful to declare our nearest neighbor a safe country to point out.

The state is appealing the ruling, but Attorney General Rossa Fanning is working on a “legislative solution” to ensure deportations can resume this summer.

However, migrants arriving in Ireland without status in Britain risk being returned to their country of origin if they cannot prove they deserve international protection.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claimed the rise in the number of migrants traveling from Britain to Ireland was proof that Britain’s controversial plan to send illegal immigrants to Rwanda was working.

Mr Sunak’s comments followed Tánaiste Micheál Martin, who said he believed Britain’s asylum policy is driving migrants into fear of being deported to Rwanda across the border from Northern Ireland into the Republic.

At an Oireachtas Justice Committee hearing last week, Ms McEntee said around 80 per cent of asylum seekers arriving in Ireland currently come through the Northern Ireland border and most are of Nigerian descent.

Ms McEntee will meet Britain’s Home Secretary James Cleverly tomorrow to discuss the increasing numbers of migrants traveling from Britain to Ireland.

A government source said there were regular meetings between the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice on strengthening and preventing abuse of the Common Travel Area between Britain and Ireland.

There are also ongoing operations between the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) and the PSNI, designed to tackle illegal migration into the state.

Last Tuesday, the government signed off on plans to allow the immigration service to speed up asylum applications from people seeking asylum from countries deemed unsafe.

Previously, only arrivals from safe countries could be processed this way. Now people from designated unsafe countries with the highest number of asylum seekers face the same processes as people from safe countries.

The government emphasizes that the EU migration pact will make it easier to return asylum seekers

A spike in the number of Nigerians claiming international protection since the start of the year means that all arrivals from the country are undergoing rapid processing, allowing them to be returned to their countries of origin.

The government believes a large number of Nigerian asylum seekers are traveling from Britain to Ireland to seek international protection for fear of being deported to Rwanda by the British government, following the adoption of a controversial deal between the two countries.

The introduction of the fast-track processing system over a year ago has already had a significant impact on reducing the number of asylum seekers seeking protection from countries classified as safe.

Government figures show a 50 percent drop in the number of applicants from safe countries since the introduction of the fast-track scheme

The government is also in the middle of a tender process to purchase a charter plane to return rejected applicants for international protection.

The government also insists that the EU migration pact will make it easier to return asylum seekers if they have been granted status in another country.

However, Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín told the newspaper Sunday Independent he believed that there should be a referendum on the EU pact.

“This is an agreement that is so important, in terms of the loss of sovereignty and the potential costs to this country, that I feel strongly that the people should have a say in it,” he said.

“I asked Prime Minister Simon Harris how much the deal would cost Irish taxpayers – and he said he didn’t know. If I were to look for a grant to install a bench in a public park, I would have to get three cost calculations, but we blindly sign the Migration Pact. There is no point.”