Green TD slams deportation of Irish-born children

Green Party TD Ciaran Cuffe has attacked Justice Minister Michael McDowell for deporting non-nationals whose children were born in Ireland before the Government's recent immigration crackdown.

Mr McDowell revealed yesterday that 37 foreigners whose children were born in Ireland had been deported in the last 20 months.

Mr Cuffe claimed he had evidence that some of the deportees had children who were born in Ireland before the Supreme Court ruling that sparked the Government's crackdown.

That ruling said the non-national parents of Irish-born children did not have the right to residency even though their children were Irish citizens.

The Government intensified its crackdown earlier this year by successfully calling a referendum to remove this automatic citizenship right from Irish-born children.

Mr Cuffe said today that the new regulations should not be applied retrospectively.

"The referendum has been held. We disagree with it, but we accept it," he said. "The least that Michael McDowell can do is allow people who were in Ireland and who had children born in Ireland before that referendum [to stay]."