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Legal migrants detained at checkpoint in Dundalk ‘worrying foreshadow' of future

A checkpoint at Dundalk on Monday was carried out by the Garda National Immigration Bureau
A checkpoint at Dundalk on Monday was carried out by the Garda National Immigration Bureau A checkpoint at Dundalk on Monday was carried out by the Garda National Immigration Bureau

THE detention of legal migrant workers at a cross-border checkpoint is a “worrying foreshadow” of what to expect post-Brexit, it has been warned.

Eight EU nationals were taken to Dundalk Garda Station on Monday after the bus they were travelling on to work was stopped at a checkpoint operated by officials from both sides of the border.

The workers were on their way to pick leeks when members of the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) stopped them after directing traffic off the M1 motorway at Dundalk.

The seven Romanians and one Lithuanian were told to present identification, and were released a number of hours later after their employer at Kilmore Farm Produce said he could guarantee documents would be produced.

A spokesman for the GNIB said Monday’s operation was carried out in conjunction with the UK Border Agency.

“These types of operations have been ongoing for the last number of years,” he said.

“Under the Immigration Act, non-Irish nationals are required to carry documentation. This will alleviate any problems at checkpoints.”

However, a spokesperson for the produce firm claimed that while workers had been stopped before, they had never been detained or ordered to produce documents.

The incident comes as fears grow for the future of the north when the UK leaves the EU.

Concern over a “hard border” has seen the government in the Republic prepare to apply for a special status for Northern Ireland.

However, minister for foreign affairs Charlie Flanagan said he could not rule out a hard border being in place by 2019.

Monday’s incident has been criticised by Sinn Féin MLA for Newry and Armagh, Cathal Boyle.

"While the state obviously has a duty to ensure people are here legally and not being exploited this whole episode is a worrying foreshadow of what we can expect should we be forced into the Conservative Party's lunatic EU exit," he said.

"These workers, who are all here totally legally, were moving between fields just a few miles apart. Is this the type of scrutiny everyone crossing the border can expect if we are to be subject to Theresa May's plan?

He added: "We have received absolutely no guarantees from the British Government on borders, funding or any of the other countless issues that will be affected.

"They clearly have no idea what an EU Exit means and it looks increasingly like it will be the people of the north who will pay for that."