Minister of State for Integration Conor Lenihan has said the Government is considering allowing some categories of foreign nationals to vote in Irish general elections. Funding will also be made available to political parties to recruit immigrants.
Speaking at a conference on immigration in Ireland hosted by the University of Notre Dame, in Indiana yesterday, Mr Lenihan said he supported extending the franchise for Dáil elections and believed this would help to integrate newcomers.
"Does casting a vote help in terms of integration? My personal and political view is that extending voting rights does act as an effective way of integrating people," he said.
"There's a very active debate going on within Government on these particular issues ... I think it's an important issue that we will have to address in the next two or three years." The options open to the Government may include extending the vote in general elections to EU citizens resident in the State, or to long-term residents who have fulfilled certain criteria.
Mr Lenihan said there was already a precedent for such a move in that British nationals were entitled to vote in Irish general elections, while EU citizens are allowed vote in local elections.
However, he ruled out any change to voting eligibility rights in presidential or constitutional referendums. "There's a citizenship requirement there, and I think that's appropriate," he said.
Mr Lenihan also announced that funding would be made available to political parties, local authorities, faith-based groups and ethnic associations as part of his department's integration strategy.
Commenting on the need to bring non-Irish people into mainstream politics, he said: "I will be asking all of our Irish political parties to take up the challenge of recruiting the new Irish into the heart of our political life. There will also be funding available to the parties to do this work. All of the literature on migration supports the idea of political participation as being a solid basis for further integration." Integration funding for faith-based groups would be made available to long-established organisations as well as new, migrant-run churches.
"It was church-led groups who did a lot of integration work in the UK, with Irish migrants, so I think it's a logical one for us to do," he said.
Behind the Government's thinking on integration was a determination not to allow "parallel societies" to develop. To that end, Mr Lenihan said, "we must fortify our policy on the asylum process so that it is firm, fair and does not involve long waiting times.
"In a similar vein, we intend to streamline residency, work permit and visa applications in a way that favours integration. At the heart of these changes will be a renewed emphasis on the acquisition of English language skills by migrants in order to qualify for the benefits and entitlements that go with residency." Mr Lenihan said he was confident the Irish political system was such that "toxic political movements" similar to those that have gained support in some European countries could not exert the same pressure in Ireland.
"They pressure middle-ground politics and politicians lurch to the extremes. It is to the credit of the Irish party political system that this has not happened at home. The Irish party system is robust and will not let this happen."
Asked if the Government would consider introducing an amnesty for undocumented migrants, Mr Lenihan reiterated his opposition. "You won't be seeing an amnesty in the near future. I don't believe it's necessary. I believe it would possibly send a wrong signal."
