Simon Harris claims UK government confirms ‘operating agreement’ for return of asylum seekers
Simon Harris claims UK government confirms ‘operating agreement’ for return of asylum seekers
Taoiseach Simon Harris has claimed that the UK government has confirmed there is an “operating agreement” to allow asylum seekers to be returned between both jurisdictions.
Mr Harris said a post-Brexit deal was struck in 2020 and allows asylum seekers whose applications are “inadmissible” to be “returned” to the UK and vice versa. It comes after the a spokesperson for UK prime minister Rishi Sunak said there is no “legal obligation” for the UK to accept the return of asylum seekers and that Britain will “not accept returns” from Ireland.
The Cabinet today approved emergency legislation from the Minister of Justice Helen McEntee to allow the UK to be designated as a safe country to enable asylum seekers to be transferred back there Mr Harris said today that the deal was put in place when the UK left the EU, that would allow refugees to be “returned in both directions”.
He said this “operational agreements” are in place under the Common Travel Area.
