A stunning 300-year-old, four star country resort has been used to house migrants, as locals fume they soon will outnumber the village’s entire population. Dundrum House Hotel has been at the centre of controversy for months with it being closed to paying guests. Groups of furious protesters have pitched up around the grounds with hope of the resort returning to its normal function. Signs have been spotted saying “Make Ireland Great Again”, a nod to Donald Trump’s mission for America, as well as “Stand With Us Together” and “Save Our Hotel”.
Dundrum’s historic, grand structure with acres of beautiful land has been overshadowed since last year with forbidding warning signs and fences stating “no unauthorised persons beyond the point”. Two years ago, the hotel housed Ukrainian refugees, yet local uproar began last summer when 70 women and children asylum seekers from other countries joined, MailOnline reports.
Immigration numbers in Ireland have shot up to the highest level since 2007 (Image: Getty)
The new arrivals mean the number of asylum seekers in the resort could soon outnumber the entire population of Dundrum, which stands at 221 residents per the last census.
Last August, angry villagers pitched their tent and caravan outside of the hotel and have stayed there for more than 300 days in protest. Despite this, the 18-hole golf course on the ground has attempted to carry on as normal.
Two legal cases are currently going through through the civil courts with the aim of stopping the hotel being turned into an International Protection Accommodation Scheme (IPAS) centre, housing possibly 300 asylum seekers.
Margaret Gallagher, 50, opposed the government’s plan for asylum seekers. “It wasn’t the ideal place for the Ukrainian refugees, but with the asylum seekers, we know nothing about them and I doubt the government do either,” she told the Mail Online. “We know for a fact the majority of these are economic migrants and we don’t want them in our village.”
Ms Gallagher explained how the hotel was once an integral part of the village, bringing in visitors to the area who spent money at the few shops they have.
Andrea Crowe, whose parents formerly owned Dundrum House, wrote on X that she is “filled with sadness”. “How can our government not engage properly with us,” Ms Crowe, 46, asked.
Immigration numbers in Ireland have shot up to the highest level since 2007, with 149,200 arrivals in the year to April 2024.
A spokesman for the Department of Integration told MailOnline that it had “Received an offer from a provider to provide international protection accommodation at this location following the end of the contract for those fleeing the war in Ukraine, and the Department is considering that offer.
“No further details can be provided while this assessment is ongoing. All offers of accommodation have to be assessed but not all are deemed appropriate or suitable.
“The relocations of Ukraine residents from this property are currently under pause, and the Department will keep residents and the provider informed about next steps.”
The Daily Express has contacted Dundrum House Hotel for comment.
