Ireland ‘cannot evade’ asylum obligations – CJEU
The EU’s highest court has found that Ireland cannot use an unexpected influx of asylum-seekers as justification for evading its obligation to cover their basic needs.
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) was giving its decision on questions referred to it by the High Court, arising from a case taken by two asylum-seekers – an Afghan national and an Indian national.
They are seeking compensation from the State for the damage that they claim to have suffered as a result of not being provided with the minimum reception conditions required by EU law under the .
Ireland acknowledges that there has been an infringement of EU law but is pleading a situation of force majeure, due to the effect of an influx of refugees from Ukraine on the housing capacity normally available for applicants for international protection.
‘Adequate standard of living’
In today (1 August), the CJEU says that EU members are required to guarantee applicants for international protection material reception conditions that ensure an adequate standard of living, whether through housing, financial aid, vouchers, or a combination of the three.
Those conditions, it says, must cover basic needs and safeguard the physical and mental health of the persons concerned.
The court added that a member state that failed to provide such conditions, even temporarily, was “manifestly and gravely exceeding its discretion with regard to the application of the directive”.
“Such a failure is, therefore, capable of constituting a sufficiently serious infringement of EU law, triggering the liability of the member state concerned,” it stated.
Derogations
Although EU law allowed for adjustments and derogations, but these could be applied only if the situation was “exceptional, duly justified, and limited in time”.
“However, even in this scenario, the directive provides that the member states must, in any event, cover the basic needs of the persons concerned, in accordance with the obligation to respect human dignity enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights,” the judges added.
“The court considers that it cannot be accepted that a member state may plead the event that triggers the derogation system, that is to say, the temporary exhaustion of the housing capacity normally available for applicants for international protection, in order to evade its obligation to cover the basic needs of the persons concerned,” the court found.
It added that the occurrence of such an event did not mean that a failure to fulfil the obligations laid down by EU law was not serious enough to be capable of giving rise to a right to compensation.
The case now goes back to the High Court for a decision, taking account of the CJEU’s ruling.
IRC welcomes ruling
The Irish Refugee Centre’s (IRC) independent law centre, which represented one of the applicants, welcomed the ruling.
“This is an important decision for all vulnerable groups, because the CJEU has again confirmed that individuals whose rights are breached by the State, can access a remedy, and that the State must be held accountable,” said the law centre’s managing solicitor Katie Mannion.
IRC chief executive Nick Henderson said that, as of 30 July, there were 942 people seeking protection who were awaiting an offer of accommodation.
"While the time a person has to sleep rough has decreased considerably, people continue to have to demonstrate their eligibility for accommodation by sleeping rough,” he stated, adding that such people had faced “a tangible increase” in risk in recent weeks.
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission also welcomed what it described as an "important judgment".
‘Hard to justify’
The Minister for Justice had warned earlier this month that the expected judgment could be “very hard to justify”.
Jim O’Callaghan said that it would mean that people in Ireland on social-housing lists or homeless lists who had not been provided with accommodation could not receive damages for the State’s failure to provide accommodation.
On the other hand, he added, applicants for asylum would immediately on arrival in Ireland be able to claim and receive damages from the State if it could not provide them with accommodation.