Plans to house asylum seekers in the Shannon Key West Hotel in Rooskey should be suspended in light of legal proceedings regarding the hotel are in the High Court, according to Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice.
The Roscommon-Galway TD has requested that the Minister for Justice and Equality, Charlie Flanagan, clarifies the matter as a matter of urgency.
Speaking on the matter, Deputy Fitzmaurice said: “As I have said before, the Shannon Key West Hotel in Rooskey – in my opinion – is not a suitable location for asylum seekers.
“It would be unfair on both asylum seekers and those already living in the local community if this plan was to go ahead – as the services required are just not in place.
“The minister needs to clarify exactly where the situation in Rooskey now stands, given the recent legal proceedings.
“This is not about being against asylum seekers; but Rooskey is a very small village. The medical, educational and transports services that would be required to house these asylum seekers are just not there.
“In the local area, medical practitioners are at capacity. Are we going to see what happened in Ballaghaderreen, where people were – through no fault of their own – foisted by the HSE on top of services that were already bursting at the seams?”