We need a stricter immigration policy

WE should be wary of adopting a special language policy to facilitate immigrants seeking permanent residency or long-term asylum leading to residency.

Those who seek English language instruction should be means-tested and their prior ability to speak the language assessed before any assistance is offered.

The ability to speak or willingness to learn English is being used cleverly to improve the chances of acquiring residency status or to have an asylum application regarded in a more favourable light.

Many who claim to need support from language services are not being truthful. A lot of legally resident immigrants can speak English well enough, but are selective in their choice of language or ability to use it when it suits them for all kinds of reasons — especially when they get into trouble with the law or want to get out of some difficult situation.

Integration Minister Conor Lenihan and his department must weigh up the cost to the taxpayer of teaching English to residents or asylum-seekers into the future.

Irish people are becoming increasingly concerned about the State’s ‘soft-touch’ approach to non-citizens who are perceived to be given assistance of a kind not normally available to the natives. Any assistance must be based strictly on need and not such that Ireland becomes a magnet for economic migrants.

There are many ‘liberals’ who are afraid to criticise our immigration policy and who naively think that all applications for residency are genuine, necessitating widespread use of expensive State services.

There must be a distinction between integration and facilitating reckless economic immigration through various means such as language training, etc.

Maurice Fitzgerald

Shanbally

Ringaskiddy

Co Cork