Warning on Irish-born draws criticism

Minister for Justice Michael McDowell has been criticised for "needlessly instilling fear" in the non-Irish parents of Irish children following his warning that a "rigorous approach" would be taken in deciding whether they would be allowed stay in the State.

Mr McDowell issued the caution as he announced details of a scheme under which non-Irish parents, who were granted leave to remain two years ago on the basis of having an Irish-born child, must now apply to have their permits renewed.

Under the Irish-Born Child Scheme, the non-Irish national parents of children born here before January 1st, 2005, were invited to apply for leave to remain. About 18,000 applications were received and 16,693 received positive decisions.

They were given leave to remain for two years and must now apply for extensions of three years, after which they may apply for full citizenship. "A rigorous approach will be taken to the implementation of the renewal process, with a completed application form and supporting documentation to be provided by each applicant," said Mr McDowell.

He said leave to remain would be renewed where the applicant could show they had "made every effort to become economically viable in the State by engaging in employment, business or a profession; taken all steps necessary, such as appropriate participation in training or language courses, to enable them to engage in employment, business or a profession; and had not been involved in criminal activity".

The announcement has been criticised by the Children's Rights Alliance (CRA) and the Immigrant Council of Ireland for a "lack of clarity" in the criteria set out. CRA chief executive Jillian van Turnhout said the criteria were "too vague" and made people nervous about whether they would be able to comply.

"What exactly does 'economically viable' mean?" she asked, adding that of the 17,000 who were here about 6,000 were lone parents. She also said most of these parents would have to pay non-EU fees for college or training, which would militate against their ability to take up "training or language courses".

Hilkka Becker, solicitor with the Immigrant Council of Ireland, said she hoped the criteria would be applied "fairly".

About 2,000 of those 17,000 granted leave to remain in 2005 are Romanian or Bulgarian, and they will not need to apply for a renewal.