Vol. 533 No. 2
22 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on contacts he has had with the British Government regarding the needs of emigrants in Britain; the actions which will be taken arising from these contacts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3625/01]
Matters relating to the welfare of Irish emigrants in Britain are discussed as necessary from time to time by representatives of the Irish and British Governments at different levels. No such matter has had to be broached by me in my contacts with British Government interlocutors since becoming Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The Irish Government since 1984 has been giving financial support through the Díon Committee based at the embassy in London to voluntary organisations in Britain which advise and assist Irish emigrants there. A sum of two million and fifteen thousand pounds is being made available for grants this year as compared with one million and fifteen thousand pounds last year and £765,000 in 1999. The Interdepartmental Committee on Emigration, chaired by my Department, is considering how best the particular health and social problems of many Irish emigrants in Britain may be addressed. I am advised that further research into the causes of these health and social problems – perhaps in the context of similar comparative studies in other EU countries as part of an action programme on social exclusion being prepared by the European Commission to be launched later this year – will facilitate and underpin decisions on measures by either Government to address them.
The Irish Government is committed, in the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness, to establishing a task force to develop a coherent long-term approach to our emigrants and their needs and I intend to put specific proposals in this regard to my colleagues in the coming weeks.
