Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 314: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if discussions have taken place between the Government and the new administration in America in relation to the undocumented Irish living in the USA; the position regarding same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40372/06]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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As I stated in replies to Parliamentary Questions on 23 November, the Government attaches the highest priority to the issue of the undocumented Irish in the United States. I continue to raise our concerns in all of my dealings with key figures in the US Administration and Legislature, including during a wide ranging discussion which I had with the new US Ambassador on 1st November.

In the period since the mid-term Congressional elections, I have written to a number of senior US legislators to congratulate them on the outcome of the elections. In doing so, I have taken the opportunity to emphasise again the Government's deep interest in the issue of the undocumented. Our Ambassador in Washington is also active in highlighting our concerns in his on-going contacts with the incoming Congressional leadership, as are officials of our Consulates across the United States.

I travelled to New York after the elections and discussed the prospects for immigration reform with a range of contacts there. I was happy to meet again with the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR). ILIR is proving highly effective on Capitol Hill and beyond in communicating the Irish dimension to the undocumented issue and I have been happy to support it financially. This was the third in a series of meetings that I have had with ILIR since September and it provided a valuable opportunity to review the situation following the mid-term elections. I will be keeping in close contact with them in the period ahead.

I now look forward to a further intensification of the Government's efforts on behalf of the undocumented in the period ahead, in particular with key Members of the incoming Congress. Overall, my initial assessment is that the recent elections have given a boost to the prospects for reform, though the issue of comprehensive immigration reform remains difficult and divisive both in Congress and in the United States generally.

I should emphasise also that I very much welcome the continuing commitment of Senators Kennedy and McCain to the advancement of the comprehensive approach to immigration that they have long promoted and which the Government strongly supports. I also greatly appreciate the recent reiteration by President Bush of his on-going commitment to comprehensive reform in this area.

The Government's overriding objective continues to be to ensure that our undocumented citizens in the United States can regularise their status, travel freely to and from Ireland and ultimately secure a path to permanent residency. Despite all the difficulties and challenges, I look forward to further progress on this priority issue for the Government in the coming period.