Senators agree to illegals overhaul

KEY senators in both US parties announced agreement with the White House yesterday on an immigration overhaul that would grant quick legal status to millions of illegal immigrants already in the US and fortify the border.

The plan would create a temporary worker programme to bring new arrivals to the US. A separate programme would cover agricultural workers. New hi-tech enforcement measures would also be instituted to verify that workers are there legally.

The compromise came after weeks of painstaking closed-door negotiations that brought the most liberal Democrats and the most conservative Republicans together with President George W Bush’s cabinet officers to produce a highly complex measure that carries heavy political consequences.