Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The issue is fluid and seems to be changing by the hour. It seems we are at a crucial time for the deal, with the consequences to be felt by a possible 50,000 undocumented Irish living in the US. Two Republican Senators have made a major effort to strip or gut 10,500 visas from the Irish allocation on Tuesday. There are other countries mentioned in the Bill as having special country status, including South Korea, Canada and Poland, and Australia has been granted 10,000 E3 visas every year since 2005. Is there any reason for the focus on the Irish in the Bill? If it is sensitive information, I do not really need to hear that response.

What can we do in the House to support this legislation? I may have asked the question before. The Minister mentioned there is ongoing lobbying, including this weekend, by the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform across Capitol Hill. What can we do to complement this, as practically every Deputy is supportive of these measures? Could we collectively put our heads together as a House to arrange a visit to the United States and actively lobby not just the usual suspects but also the unusual people who may not be seen as friends of Ireland or may not have a connection to this country? Perhaps they could be swayed by our collective argument.

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