Senator stalls American bill that could offer 10,000 visas a year for Irish

A Republican senator has placed a hold on an immigration bill which is making its way through the US Senate and backed by Irish-American groups in recent months.

It had been hoped that approval of an expansion to the E-3 legislation would pave the way for up to 10,000 visas a year for skilled Irish workers.

However, according to the Irish Voice, Senator Charles Grassley from Iowa, as was expected, expressed his concerns about the bill, the broader aspects of which would also allow more hi-tech workers from countries such as China, India, and Mexico to come to America.

E-3 visas are temporary work visas that allow individuals or married couples to come to the US with a job offer and reside there for two years at a time as a legal employee. The visa would be indefinitely renewable.

Chick Schumer, the Democratic senator of New York who has been a champion of the initiative, had moved to hurry the bill through the Senate on Wednesday and had 53 of his fellow Democrats signed on to support him.

It is understood that as many as eight Republicans will give their backing to the bill, a group of politicians which is being led by Senator Scott Brown of Massachusetts.

In that eventuality, the bill would have a phillibuster-proof majority in the senate. Another Republican senator, Susan Collins from Maine, also signalled her support on Wednesday.

Mr Grassley had made his intentions clear when the bill first arrived in the Senate after passing through the House of Representatives, although the Irish aspect had not been part of that original move, much to the annoyance of Irish-Americans who felt duped by other campaigning groups.

“I have concerns about the impact of this bill on future immigration flows, and am concerned that it does nothing to better protect Americans at home who seek high-skilled jobs during this time of record high unemployment,” Mr Grassley said in December.

Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, is set to be lobbied by the hi-tech industry as well as Irish-American leaders in order to find a way around the Grassley impasse and allow the bill to pass the senate.

Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore, who will be in the US next week, is expected to seek a meeting with McConnell and possibly Grassley, according to the Irish Voice.