Fine Gael has proposed a new bill under which non-nationals would be given automatic Irish citizenship if they successfully applied to join the Garda.
The rules governing who could join An Garda Síochána were changed last year to allow the recruitment of non-Irish citizens to the police force.
Entry to the Garda is now open to citizens of the EU and European Economic Area states and any non-national who has been lawfully present in Ireland for five years.
Fine Gael Senator Brian Hayes today said his party welcomed the inclusion of non-nationals and was now seeking to have Private Members' Bill passed in the Oireachtas which would grant citizenship to any successful applicants.
"Anyone who applies to join An Garda Síochána must pass through rigorous security checks before they are allowed to join as a recruit," he said.
"This should be sufficient criteria for assessing the suitability of non-nationals to claim citizenship. If they are deemed fit to join the Garda, they should also be deemed fit to become an Irish citizen.
"This measure would also highlight the importance that Irish society places on new arrivals to this country who have come to live, work and prosper in Ireland.
The Bill will be proposed at Second Stage in the Seanad in the autumn.
It emerged last month that Minister for Justice Michael McDowell is formulating a plan to bring to the Government seeking approval for the recruitment of an additional 1,000 full-time members to An Garda Síochána.
The new recruits would be in addition to the 2,000 members already being recruited to the force, which will bring its strength to 14,000, as was promised in the programme for Government.
A drive to recruit more non-nationals and members of ethnic minorities to become gardaí began last year. Some eight per cent of all applicants in the latest Garda recruitment campaign were non-nationals
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