UK government backs citizenship vote

The British government gave its backing tonight to a referendum on the right to Irish citizenship.

Both governments issued a joint statement confirming they did not believe the proposed amendment to the constitution breached the Good Friday Agreement.

It said that in drawing up the Agreement neither government had intended to impose any obligations to confer nationality or citizenship on people born on the island of Ireland whose parents do not have sufficient connection with the island.

The plan has caused outrage among certain Northern Ireland political parties who claim that by holding such a referendum the Irish Government is overruling the Agreement.

The vote on whether to restrict the right to Irish citizenship for children born to foreign nationals is to be held on June 11 – the same day as European and local elections.

The ratification of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 meant anyone born on the island of Ireland was entitled to Irish citizenship.

However, the British government is trying to restrict that entitlement amid concerns that some non-nationals are having babies in the country to bypass asylum regulations.

It has drawn up legislation restricting the right to citizenship of children born in Ireland to non-national parents unless at least one of them has lived in the country for at least three of the previous four years.

Mark Durkan, leader of the nationalist SDLP in Northern Ireland has written an angry letter to Taoiseach Bertie Ahern which said his community viewed the move with “profound concern”.

He said the Good Friday Agreement had given “clear promises” in respect of the citizenship rights of all people in Northern Ireland.

And he criticised the failure of the Irish Government to consult Northern Ireland parties about the referendum plan during recent talks on the future of the Agreement.

The SDLP leader complained: “It seems that the choice was made not to engage the Northern parties on this matter but to instead dispose of our interests by way of a joint declaration with the British government, helping to qualify provisions of the Agreement.”

The move to hold a swift referendum has been criticised by Sinn Féin and the head of the Human Rights Commission, Maurice Manning.

Democratic Unionist leader, the Reverend Ian Paisley also claimed the referendum put paid to the argument that the Good Friday Agreement could not be changed.

The North Antrim MP insisted: “In holding a referendum to amend Articles Two and Three of the Irish Constitution, the Government are unilaterally amending the 1998 Agreement.

“The Dublin government has fundamentally breached the Belfast Agreement by not consulting over the proposed changes.

“This only further serves to highlight that the Belfast Agreement is dead.” Mr Ahern and Justice Minister Michael McDowell both dismissed such concerns today.

The Taoiseach said the referendum was simply a matter of closing a loophole in the country’s immigration system which he claimed was being abused.

“Citizenship is not something that can be just used by people, to come into a country for the benefit of getting citizenship,” he said.

“That cannot be something that can be tolerated or allowed to continue.

“And it’s not going to be, unless the people decide that they don’t care about it.”

Mr McDowell described the proposed amendments as “wholly consistent” with the Good Friday Agreement.