Magowna House contract for asylum seekers will remain - Minister confirms Inch locals commit to

by Páraic McMahon Paraic@clareecho.ie

MINISTER FOR Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman (GP) has said Magowna House will continue to be used to accommodate male asylum seekers despite strong local opposition.

The Clare Echo was first to report last Wednesday on plans from Minister O’Gorman’s Department to accommodate 69 male International protection applicants across the 19 rooms at Magowna House.

Only last year, Clare County Council deemed the property was not suitable to house Ukrainian refugees with particular concerns raised on the percolation and sewage system.

Presently, only three holiday homes on the property are in use with refurbishment works ongoing to the hotel which remains without a fire certificate. The Department have offered a twelve month contract to the operators. Officials in the Department expect a fire certificate will be issued in the next fortnight and that the hotel building will come into use from then.

Magowna House is is owned by Ocaolside Ltd, a lease is in place with CRM Properties Limited. This is the first time that the provider has provided accommodation to IPAS.

Speaking to The Clare Echo, Salman Ahlam who is an employee of CRM Properties and is working as General Manager at Magowna House claimed that the total number of asylum seekers would be down from 69 to 63.

She said the company “decided three months ago” that Magowna House could be used for accommodating refugees. When questioned why the local community could not have been informed on plans during this time, she stated, “As far as I know it was on the newspaper last week” and added that IPAS usually communicate with the local authorities in each area. “I understand where they are coming from but they don’t have to proceed like this, here it is not fair for both sides, both sides are suffering,” Salman added.

Since the arrival of 34 male asylum seekers on Monday evening, blockades have been mounted on both approaches to the slip road for the three star hotel which has been closed since 2019.

Clare’s Oireachtas return bus per day from Magowna to Ennis and that the frequency of this will be increased.

Asylum seekers are currently residing in the three holiday homes on the property as the hotel itself is not able to cater for persons. The meeting heard that a fire certificate for the main hotel building at Magowna House is not presently ready but is expected to be approved in the next two weeks which would allow for a higher occupancy of men at the premises. Currently, the main hotel building can be used for recreational activities and meals but not residentially.

by Páraic McMahon Paraic@clareecho.ie

managing the rota.

members met with Minister O’Gorman to discuss the matter on Wednesday morning, a week on from receiving a briefing memo from his Department on plans to accommodate 69 male asylum seekers in Inch.

Those present included Cathal Crowe TD (FF), Michael McNamara TD (IND), Violet-Anne Wynne TD (IND), Senator Roisin Garvey (GP), Senator Timmy Dooley (FF) and Senator Martin Conway (FG). Joe Carey TD (FG) who remains on sick leave was not present but was represented by his parliamentary assistant, Ger O’Halloran.

At the meeting, Minister O’Gorman committed to meet with Inch residents to listen to their concerns. He also outlined that there was no intention from the Department to close the facility or to rescind the twelve month contract offered to the CRM Properties Ltd who have a lease for the operation of the facility.

Despite this assertion, Minister O’Gorman told the meeting that he personally hasn’t been involved in any negotiations with the operators or owners of Magowna House. He acknowledged that information sharing and communication on the issue has been poor.

Access to transport has been one of the concerns flagged by Inch residents, Minister O’Gorman said it is planned to have one

On Tuesday evening, local residents met with management of Magowna House and were joined by Senator Dooley in their deliberations where the discussion of a lower quantity of asylum seekers was among the topics of conversation. No official negotiations have taken place on a reduced number to the 69 as first announced, the Minister confirmed.

Residents will be provided with a full board service that includes three meals per day and snacks. An approximate three members of staff will be on site each day attending to the needs of residents.

International protection applicants are eligible to work from six months after their arrival in Ireland, most of the residents in Inch will be new arrivals. Any individual residing in IPAS accommodation is entitled to a medical card. They can also avail of English language classes from the local Education Training Board.

An adult resident receives an allowance of €38.80 per week. Other assistance from the Department of Social Protection, such as bus fares to attend appointments, is available at the discretion of the local community welfare officer. An International protection applicant is not entitled to apply for or avail of social housing or the Housing Assistance Payment while their claim for asylum is being determined by the International Protection Office (IPO).

Across the country, more than 135 accommodation locations have been utilised in 2022 across 23 counties.

INCH LOCALS have said their blockade outside Magowna House and on the approach road to the facility which is to be used for accommodating male asylum seekers will remain in place for “as long as it takes”.

The Clare Echo first reported on Wednesday of last week that 69 male asylum seekers were to be housed at Magowna, there had been no prior communication with the local community prior to this. Strong opposition was voiced at a public meeting held at The Kilmaley Inn on Friday evening.

Shortly after 6:40pm on Monday, a bus carrying 34 male asylum seekers arrived at Magowna House with locals left shocked. In their response, they mounted a blockade at either entrance to the slip road and outside the hotel which bales of hay used to cut off access to the premises.

Since then, Inch residents have operated on four hour shifts at Magowna Cross, Magowna Hotel and Magowna Hill with a WhatsApp group

Patrick O’Malley was among one of the first locals to hear the bus arriving on Monday evening. “Myself, my parents and a few neighbours were inside in home, we heard this noise and we saw this bus outside the door, there was no warning, these men were just getting out and walking up the hill to Magowna, basically by the looks of it there was no kitchen facilities ready for them because 24 pizzas were delivered out to them after coming down to CityWest, the bus was fairly cramped with all of them and their luggage”.

The O’Malley family live directly opposite Magowna House. “It is a stone’s throw away, we’re close to Magowna House but that is not the issue, the issue is there’s nothing here for them, it is a simple matter of fact, there is no shop. The issue isn’t how close we are to them, the issue is the volume of them and there isn’t amenities to them. We’re eight kilometres and five miles from Ennis, the nearest footpath is six kilometres away”.

He said, “Magowna House isn’t capable for what IPAS and the developer has put in here, there is