Sinn Féin has vowed not to house asylum seekers in communities which may already be struggling.

Today, the party published its immigration policy, which calls for the establishment of a new management agency.

On Newstalk Breakfast, Sinn Féin's Elections Director Matt Carthy described the outgoing Government's approach to immigration as "chaotic" and "visibly divisive".

"The new initiative is a proposal for an immigration management agency that will be giving responsibility for processing, enforcement, registration and accommodation in relation to all issues," he said.

Deputy Carthy said the current approach to immigration is placing too many asylum seekers in rural and working class areas.

"We don’t support the notion of placing more vulnerable people in areas where people are already struggling to get by," he said.

"It is illogical to place a large number of vulnerable people into areas where services are already stressed and the local community is already struggling."

Communities

Deputy Carthy said it is important for local communities to be "part of the conversation".

"In areas where you couldn't get a GP, where the local schools were under pressure, where you couldn’t get social amenities, people woke up one morning to find their local hotel had been turned into a direct provision centre," he said.

"That is a recipe for social upheaval and that is not something Sinn Fein would stand over.”

'Compassion'

Deputy Carthy said Sinn Féin in Government would treat asylum seekers with "a degree of compassion".

"[We won't] just hand people tents and sleeping bags and expect them to make their own way," he said.

He also criticised lengthy process times for International Protection applicants, which he said is taking a year on average.

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Feature image: Sasko Lazarov/RollingNews.ie