Dáil support for bill to aid illegal Irish in US

THE Dáil has thrown its weight behind legislation being proposed in the US which would help the thousands of illegal Irish there.

There was unanimous support for a motion by Foreign Affairs Minister Dermot Ahern that the Dáil back the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act of 2005, a bipartisan bill being brought before the US Congress by Republican senator John McCain and his Democratic counterpart, Ted Kennedy.

Mr Ahern believes a significant show of Irish support for the bill might influence Congress. He feels that, of various immigration reforms currently being discussed in the US, the bill would offer the most to undocumented Irish.