Show some respect to new EU immigrants

AFTER reading a letter entitled "Controls must be set for EU immigrants" (Irish Examiner, February 27), it is obvious how small-minded many people in our country are and how easily they forget the past.

The letter describes our "impending doom" and how immigrants will flock to Ireland in their millions, sucking the country dry when the 10 new countries join the EU.

The fact is that we cannot fill all the jobs available. We are failing to produce enough qualified people to fill positions created by multinationals. The Government has gone on recruitment drives all over the world to entice workers to Ireland to sustain our economy.

Do we really expect people to come to this country to fill these jobs yet survive on nothing while they look for work because we are too greedy to provide welfare? Hundreds of thousands of welfare tourists pouring out of the new poorer member countries didn't happen in the past when countries like Ireland, Spain and Portugal joined.

Irish immigrants were accepted to other countries when they had nothing to their name and lacked any qualification unlike many from the new member states yet their contribution has been great to countries like the US.

It is time we treated the new members' people with the same respect shown to other member states and not as second class citizens of the EU.

Marty Hogan

Ballymague

Buttevant

Co Cork