Irish illegals in US - Issues to resolve here

EVERY time there’s a meeting between a Government representative and an American president the tragic issue of undocumented — illegal by any other name — Irish people in America is raised.

Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore has admitted that there seems to be little prospect of securing an advantageous arrangement for the estimated 50,000 Irish people caught in this awful limbo. Political sensitivity — and fairness — make it impossible to treat one nationality better than another in this regard.

We should reflect too on our own reaction to inward immigration. Would we accept that Irish people trying to build a new life abroad be precluded from work until their status is established as we do with so many who come here to get work?

As statistics confirm Ireland is a very difficult place for non-EU citizens to secure legalised access. There are more than 500 judicial review cases on asylum before the High Court at the moment. We cannot insist the difficulties of the illegal Irish in America be resolved until we put our own house in order.