Labour: 'Every child' born in Ireland should have a pathway to citizenship

Labour leader Alan Kelly called for the establishment of a 'pathway towards citizenship' for every child born in Ireland. 

The Tánaiste says that children born in Ireland should have a pathway to citizenship, but that repealing or overturning the 27th amendment is a "different thing".

Under the amendment, passed in a 2004 citizenship referendum, children born in Ireland are only entitled to automatic citizenship if at least one of their parents is a citizen or is entitled to be.

Labour leader Alan Kelly told the Dáil that his party is "now pursuing a campaign to ensure that every child born in this country has a pathway towards citizenship".

"We will not stop until it is achieved. It is completely wrong that such children cannot get passports, have problems accessing higher education or in some cases are threatened with deportation. 

It is wrong that children are treated differently from those they sit next to in school and are in some ways discriminated against.

Mr Kelly referenced the case of Eric Zhi Ying Mei Xue, who was threatened with deportation to China last year. Eric has never lived anywhere other than his native Wicklow. 

More than 65,000 people signed a petition calling on then justice minister Charlie Flanagan to halt the deportation, which Mr Flanagan did.

Mr Kelly said that there "are many children like Eric".

In response, Leo Varadkar said that he "supports the thrust of the campaign and the intentions behind it", but said reverting to the previous system of guaranteed citizenship for those who have children here could be abused.

"To me it would be wrong to deport [young people] to countries they never called home and expect them to start their lives there. We need a change in this area to provide a better legal mechanism for "dreamers", as the deputy describes them, young people born in Ireland who are not citizens but who know no other home and were schooled here. They need a pathway to regularisation and then to citizenship, which is a slightly different thing."