Motion or amendment: Addressing the Impact of Illegal Immigration in Northern Ireland

Motion or amendment by Mr Jonathan Buckley on 13 May 2025.

MLA: Mr Jonathan Buckley
Party at the time: Democratic Unionist Party
Date: 13 May 2025
Type: Motion or amendment
Business: Motion · Private Members' Motion
Heading: Addressing the Impact of Illegal Immigration in Northern Ireland
Assembly identifier: Document 439238

Read the official Assembly record Open Data source

Text

Addressing the Impact of Illegal Immigration in Northern Ireland
That this Assembly notes the Prime Minister’s plans to reduce legal migration to the UK; regrets the Government’s continuing failure to meaningfully address illegal immigration, including through measures that apply equally across the UK; expresses alarm that the estimated cost of accommodation for asylum seekers in Northern Ireland has risen to £400 million, four times the original estimate, as detailed in the National Audit Office briefing on the Home Office’s asylum accommodation contracts; is concerned that, increasingly, this is placing unsustainable pressures on basic services, including access to GPs, dentists and the provision of school places; further notes the link between illegal immigration, increased demand for housing, and the proliferation of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) in many areas of Northern Ireland; and calls on the Minister for Infrastructure to urgently review, and amend, the Strategic Planning Policy Statement to place additional restrictions on the approval of HMOs by local councils.

160 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.