Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this important debate. The discussion is clearly about the US executive order on immigration that President Trump has signed into law. The order is, in itself, outrageous and racist in motivation.

The spirit of what the President has sought to do is to cast certain people into a position based on their race and religious belief. It was clear to anyone who watched the former Mayor of New York, Rudy Giuliani, say it was crafted in a way that met the requirements of what the President campaigned on but which was also legal. It is clear what the intent was. I am pleased that the checks and balances provided for in the US Constitution have scuppered the particular intent behind this order. Notwithstanding that, there is an opportunity on the Taoiseach's forthcoming visit to Washington to set out very clearly what the Irish people see as the failure of the policy the President put in place and to recognise the true republican credentials that need to be addressed here, giving people rights based on who they are, not their religion, sexual orientation or place of origin. Those are the principles the Taoiseach needs to espouse when he visits Washington in March. It is important that we set out those principles and try to ensure that the US Executive recognises the undocumented status of so many Irish citizens and ensures they are not victimised based on the fact that they are undocumented, that they come from Ireland or that their religion is Catholic in the main.

I want to respond to those in the House and elsewhere who suggest we should remove the pre-clearance facilities at Shannon and Dublin Airports. I represent the constituency of Clare in which Shannon is based. It is vital to recognise the impact of ending pre-clearance. It would make the travel arrangements of the many people who travel for tourism and business more complicated. It would increase the cost of fares based on the increased hassle for airlines and it would not matter a jot to President Trump or those seeking to put this immigration ban in place. The only people who would be inconvenienced would be those travelling between Ireland and the United States of America. I contend that it would be better to be refused entry in Shannon or Dublin than in New York, Boston or Atlanta. For that reason, we must keep cool heads and use the diplomatic channels that exist to set out our principles and understanding of how two countries should interact in a diplomatic way.

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