If Ireland opts-in to the Asylum and Migration Management Regulation (AMMR), adopted by the EU Parliament yesterday, when we have NO legal obligation to do so. The provisions give the EU Commission power to dictate the amount of relocated asylum seeker applicants we must receive, in addition to the already massive influx of asylum seekers into our country. The AMMR was created in “accordance with the principle of solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility, including its financial implications, between the Member States” as enshrined in Art. 80 of the Treaty of the Functioning of Europe (TFEU), pursuant to Art. 77 to 79. The provisions will give the power to the EU Commission to dictate the amount of asylum seeker applicants Ireland must receive from countries under “migratory pressure”. The EU minimum number of relocations of 30,000 could substantially rise if countries experience significant migratory pressure. A case in point is the 2015 EU emergency relocation programme under Art. 80 of the TFEU, pursuant to Art. 77-79, to relocate 160,000 asylum seekers from Italy and Greece to other EU countries over a two year period. Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic refused to comply and infringement proceedings were brought under Art. 80 of the TFEU by the EU Commissioner. In the Court of Justice of the European Union’s judgement delivered on 2 April 2020, the Court upheld the infringements proceedings on the basis that by refusing to comply with the temporary mechanism for relocation, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic failed to fulfil their obligations under EU law. It is noteworthy that the court held that Member States could not rely on maintenance of law and order or safeguarding of internal security to avoid implementing the mechanism. Poland, Hungary and Czech Republic are legally bound by legislation created pursuant to Art. 80 of the TFEU whereas Ireland is NOT. The provisions of the AMMR attack our Sovereignty as enshrined in Art. 15.2.1 of our Constitution that: “The sole and exclusive power of making laws for the State is hereby vested in the Oireachtas: no other legislative authority has power to make laws for the State.” Ireland’s membership of the EU resulted in the insertion of a “necessitated obligations” clause in the Third Amendment of the Constitution Act 1972. Art. 29.4.6, provides as follows: “No provision of this Constitution invalidates laws enacted, acts done, or measures adopted by the State, before, on or after the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, that are necessitated by the obligations of membership of the European Union …, or prevents laws enacted, acts done or measures adopted by – i. they said European Union … institutions thereof, ii. the European Communities or European Union existing immediately before the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, or institutions thereof, or iii. bodies competent under the treaties referred to in this section, from having the force of law in the State.” The State cannot argue that the AMMR, created pursuant to Art. 80 of the TFEU, is protected by the ‘necessitated obligations’ clause as Ireland is NOT required to adopt the provisions by virtue of its EU membership. It is therefore arguable that the provisions of the AMMR curb an essential feature of our Sovereignty, to make our own immigration policies. We need to demand that TDs vote against opting-in to the Migration and Asylum Pact. The provisions of the AMMR have such far-reaching consequences on our National Sovereignty that we must push for a Referendum so that the Irish people have a say on the future of our country.