Getting a sporting chance

It may be more years than we care to remember since the Irish rugby team won the Five Nations, and we've never won an Olympic swimming medal we can all feel proud of, but a law to be passed in Australia may change all that. Soon we might see some of the all-conquering Wallabies, and even Australian swimmers, lining out in the Ireland colours.

Confused? You needn't be. There are, you see, around 500,000 Australians who, under the law of the Republic, are eligible for an Irish passport by virtue of their heritage. But they have not been allowed under Australian law to apply for an Irish passport if they have wanted to hold onto their Australian one.

In a country where patriotism knows no bounds, dual citizenship has always been a no-no. But three weeks ago, the Australian government announced it is to change the rules governing dual citizenship.

According to the Irish Embassy in Canberra, which has received scores of phone calls in recent weeks, there is no shortage of would-be Irish men and women down under hoping to take advantage of their roots and claim an Irish passport as soon as the law is changed.

Like Irish men and women who want to go to Australia, Australians can get visas to stay and work in the Republic for only two years. But if they have Irish passports, they can come and go as they please, not only in the Republic, but also in the rest of Europe.

Lifting the prohibition on dual citizenship was reportedly something Paul Keating, Australia's then prime minister, was considering in 1994. But he decided against it, because it would have benefited Rupert Murdoch, the media mogul, by allowing him to buy up Australian television stations and thus, at least in the government's eyes, wield far too much power in the Australian media. Murdoch surrendered his Australian citizenship years ago to become a US citizen, a fact that has made him a hate figure for many super-patriotic Australians.

Last year, more than 600 Australians lost their citizenship when they applied to become citizens of other countries. That number is tipped to increase dramatically, as globalisation increases the number of job opportunities abroad, which is why Australia's immigration minister, Philip Ruddock, thinks it prudent to change the law.

The upshot is that Australia's loss may be the Republic's gain. Not only might increasing numbers of Australians make a beeline for the Republic, solving our labour shortage, but who knows how many world-beating, sports-mad, Irish-Australian Bruces and Sheilas the dual-citizenship legislation might throw up?

One day, we might even beat England at cricket. Everyone else seems to do it with monotonous frequency.