Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree. Last year, there was a bipartisan reintroduction of the E3 visa approach in the US Senate and House of Representatives. This is a welcome development. However, the Bill lapsed with the conclusion of the last session of Congress at the end of 2022. We are discussing options how to potentially move forward the Bill into the new Congress. This was a key theme of my meetings when I visited Washington in February. There has to be a bipartisan dimension to this. It is very challenging. On the previous occasion, one vote in the Senate prevented the E3 visa legislation from going through. We had discussions in February. Even on the recent visit, we discussed emigration issues with the delegation that came with President Biden. That delegation included members of Congress and the US Government. It is a very polarising issue in the US politically. This has made it particularly challenging. We continue to work with all state agencies in the US to try to help the undocumented as best we can.

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