Local and national representatives in Tipperary are being urged to lobby the government to stop all new arrivals of refugees and International Protection Applicants into the country.
Cashel Community activist Liam Browne says in the wake of failed efforts to bring 74 male IPA’s to a hostel in the town last week its time to call a halt.
Speaking on Tipp Today he said politicians should do what they elected to do and represent the opinions of the people.
“We pay our leaders, we elect our leaders to lead not to look for guidance by newspapers or polls. And I think we know at this stage now if we’re starting to put people in tents up the country, if we’re starting to put people into derelict buildings in Ireland, if we’re looking for every outhouse and shed to put people into well then we have an issue. And there’s absolutely no point in making that issue worse because its not going to get better until we put a proper plan in place.”
Liam Browne says politicians in Tipperary and across the country need to face up to the fact that immigration is an election issue.
Labour TD Aodhán Ó Ríordáin recently said immigration had not been a dominant issue in previous elections.
“We are uniquely placed in a European context in not having our general elections dominated by the issue of immigration for example. And I think every political party should take a level of credit for that. I mean it doesn’t come up as a political debating point.
“But there are members of the Oireachtas who need to be called out for using rhetoric about freeloaders.”
However Liam Browne says this view shows how out of touch the Labour Party is.
“Well not to put too fine a point on it that’s exactly why Labour are on about 2% in the polls and the likelihood is that Labour will lose all their seats in the next election.
“This is being debated in every single household, every single town and village in the country. The problem is anybody who tries to debate it in public immediately gets called racist, gets called right wing. I’ve always said if you don’t have a debate in open view it doesn’t mean the debate is not happening.
“And Aodhán and any other politician who doesn’t think this is happening is in for a hell of a shock next June in local elections and sometime next year in national elections.”
