Ireland could charge asylum seekers for WiFi and food

Asylum seekers in Ireland with jobs could be charged up to €238 (£200) a week for state accommodation and have to pay for food and services such as WiFi.

The Irish Government is considering the plans in moves to toughen its asylum rules amid concerns that its offer to migrants is more generous than other European countries.

EU rules allow member states to seek contributions ranging from €15 a week to €238 a week from working asylum seekers, depending on their earnings.

Officials have told the Irish Government that France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and Hungary have similar schemes and that it could take up to two years to implement, The Irish Independent reported.

There have been a string of anti-migrant arson attacks and protests in Ireland, which is in the grips of a housing crisis, and where the number of asylum seekers almost doubled in the first six months of this year, compared to the same period last year.

A crackdown on migration by Simon Harris, the Taoiseach, has paid off for the Fine Gael leader. He took over from Leo Varadkar in April when Sinn Fein, the opposition, held a commanding lead in the polls.

That lead had lasted for about two years, but the Left-wing party’s support collapsed in local and European elections in June after it was outflanked on immigration.

An Irish Times/Ipsos opinion poll, published on Thursday, had Fine Gael’s best results since 2021 and Sinn Fein’s lowest since before the 2020 general election. The centre-Right Fine Gael climbed four points to 27 per cent, seven points clear of Sinn Fein, on 20 per cent.

Mr Harris’s personal approval ratings jumped by 17 points to a 55 per cent satisfaction rating, which will increase pressure on him to call an early election before the March 2025 deadline.

The poll suggested the current three-party coalition government could be re-elected if a vote was held today.

In the Netherlands, Geert Wilders hailed a request to Brussels by the Dutch government to opt out of EU migration policy as a “mini-Nexit”. The hard-Right eurosceptic won elections last year on an anti-immigration platform but is not part of the Dutch prime minister’s cabinet.

“It will probably take a very long time. But still, this is a sign of a new wind blowing through the Netherlands”, Mr Wilders said in parliament before making his nod to Brexit.

The European Commission, however, ruled out the Dutch request and said the current laws “continue to be binding for the Netherlands”. Hungary has said it too wants to opt out of European law on migration.