Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 276: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will meet a delegation of undocumented Irish when he is in America on 17 March 2006. [7758/06]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I am acutely aware of the stressful burden which their undocumented status places on many of our citizens in the United States and on their families at home. On all my visits to the United States I have met a wide range of Irish community groups and interests and have heard first-hand of the difficulties being faced by the undocumented. In this regard officials of our embassy in Washington and of the consulates in Boston, Chicago, New York and San Francisco are in ongoing contact with a wide cross-section of our citizens, including the undocumented, and regularly report back to the Department, including on meetings of the newly-formed Irish lobby for immigration reform.

A particular focus of the visit of the Taoiseach and myself to Washington over the St. Patrick's Day period will be to convey directly to the President, Mr. Bush, his administration and key players on Capitol Hill the Government's strong support for measures to regularise the position of our undocumented citizens. There will also be opportunities for the Taoiseach and myself to discuss the strategy in pursuit of the above with members of the community and to have the updated assessment of the Ambassador and his team on the prospects ahead for immigration reform. In the circumstances, the particular question raised by the Deputy is fully catered for by my Department.