An eight-candidate debate on RTÉ One television ahead of European Parliament elections on 7 June has been dominated by the issue of immigration.
Upfront with Katie Hannon heard Fianna Fáil TD Barry Cowen say that the topic had become a “real issue” on the doorsteps during the campaign.
Mr Cowen said ten weeks ago one in eight people were raising it on the doorsteps but was now “one in two”.
He said that immigration issue needed a “reset” and the Garda National Immigration Bureau near the border only had two people working in it.
Asked about asylum seekers coming across the border with Northern Ireland Sinn Féin MEP Chris McManus that his party would speak to the British Government about the issue.
He said: “We don’t want to see any border on the island of Ireland.”
Fine Gael MEP Maria Walsh accused Sinn Féin, which has called for an end to open borders, of speaking out of “both sides of its mouth” in relation to borders.
She said the system that is in place for dealing with immigration in Europe is not suitable.
Independent candidate Saoirse McHugh said that the migration system was “atrocious”.
She added that 35,000 had died in the Mediterranean Sea in the past ten years.
Independent MEP Luke “Ming” Flanagan said the “number one” thing the EU needed to do was to stop selling weapons to war zones.
He argued there were too many crossing to be able to monitor the border with the Northern Ireland.
Aontú TD Peadar Tóibín criticised the EU Solidarity Pact system and claimed that Ireland would be “told” how many people it would have to accept.
He added “self-determination is really important”.
Independent candidate Peter Casey said decision of a Belfast court that large parts of the UK’s Rwanda law should not apply to Northern Ireland could result in increase in asylum seekers.
Green Party Senator Pauline O’Reilly said “people have a right to asylum” she added her party had concerns the EU migration pact did not go far enough.
The debate also discussed agriculture, defence and Ukraine.
Peadar Tóibín confirmed he would run for the next general election in Ireland even if he became an MEP which would result in another person being co-opted into his European Parliament seat.
However, Barry Cowen said he would not contest the next general election if elected a MEP.
