Vol. 560 No. 1
314 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has had any talks with American officials in relation to the status of young Irish people living illegally there; the progress which has been made in relation to legalising these people; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1899/03]
The embassy in Washington DC is in ongoing contact with the US authorities across the full range of our interests, including the status of Irish citizens in the US. In this regard, and despite what all of us may wish, the reality is that at present there seems no likelihood of any special measures being introduced to regularise the position of undocumented Irish people in the US.
Our embassy and consulates maintain a close working relationship with Irish immigration groups in the United States. Through this channel, and through their broader contacts with the Irish community, the embassy and the consulates monitor the situation with regard to the undocumented Irish in the United States.
An annual sum, $300,000 in 2002, has been provided in the Vote for Foreign Affairs to assist groups in the US working with Irish immigrants there. One very welcome development is the close co-ordination and co-operation between immigrant advice groups funded by the Government largely as a result of the formation of the coalition of Irish immigration centres in 1995.
The diversity programme, DV, or Schumer visa lottery was introduced in 1994, and remains an important avenue of legal emigration from Ireland to the US.
