Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 June 2004
40 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the plight of the undocumented Irish in the United States of America will be discussed at the upcoming EU-US summit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18780/04]
View answer57 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the plight of thousands of undocumented Irish immigrants in the USA, the fact that many are reluctant to return home for funerals and so on due to immigration controls at Shannon, are vulnerable to exploitation at their place of employment and are unable to obtain a driver’s licence or health coverage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18746/04]
View answer75 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if it is intended to raise with President Bush during the EU-Ireland summit the position of undocumented Irish in the United States and urge him to take steps to regularise their position; the representations he has made generally to the US authorities on this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18827/04]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 40, 57 and 75 together.
In our capacity as Presidency of the European Union, Ireland will host the forthcoming EU-US summit on 26 June. The main issues for discussion will relate to foreign policy, economic and trade relations and other areas of shared EU-US interest. Due to the nature of the meeting, it would not be appropriate to raise bilateral issues such as the situation of undocumented Irish people in the USA. It may be, however, that there will be an occasion to do so bilaterally. I assure the Deputies that this issue has been directly taken up in bilateral contacts with US political leaders. When I visited Washington in March, I met a number of prominent politicians there and took the opportunity to flag our concerns about the position of Irish immigrants in the USA. In particular, I welcomed the proposals made earlier this year by President Bush, by Senators Tom Daschle and Chuck Hagel and, more recently, by Senator Edward Kennedy. These proposals represent genuine efforts to deal with the situation of the undocumented in the USA in a constructive and sympathetic way. While there appears to be no prospect of a formal amnesty for the undocumented at the present time, the Daschle-Hagel and the Kennedy proposals in particular appear to offer undocumented Irish people an opportunity to obtain permanent legal residency. As these proposals will have to be approved by the US Congress, it is too early to say what changes or amendments may be made in the course of their consideration. I will continue to monitor the progress of both initiatives through the US Congress closely in the coming months.
In the meantime, I am aware that, as a result of increased security controls following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, it is becoming harder for undocumented foreign nationals in the USA to obtain social security cards and driving licences. While we will continue to do what we can, from a humanitarian point of view, for Irish citizens who are affected by these new controls, the best hope for the future is early progress on the legislative proposals to regularise the status of the undocumented in the USA. I assure the Deputies therefore that, through the ongoing efforts of our embassy in Washington and through my own contacts with political leaders in the USA, I will continue to encourage and support measures that would benefit Irish citizens in that country.
