Justice Minister Says he Wants to Reduce Number of People Seeking Asylum in Ireland - 15/05/2026

Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan has said he wants to reduce the number of migrants claiming asylum in Ireland and believes Irish reunification could happen “quicker than we think” as he set out his stall for the leadership of Fianna Fáil.In a wide-ranging interview with the Indo Politics podcast, the minister said there needed to be a “mature discussion around migration” and suggested people were at times nervous to talk about it.He defended former taoiseach Bertie Ahern, who is at the centre of a racism row over comments he made while being secretly recorded when canvassing in the Dublin Central by-election.Mr Ahern was taped saying to a voter at their doorstep that “the ones I worry about are the Africans” and that he had concerns about the next generation of Muslims in Ireland.We were joined on The Agenda this morning by CEO of Doras, John Lannon, to get his reaction to this. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.