Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has been accused of failing to push for a solution to the problem faced by up to 20,000 Irish people living illegally in the United States.
Speaking after a meeting with US president George Bush in the White House yesterday, Mr Ahern said undocumented Irish people in the US will not qualify for an amnesty and will have to return home before lodging new visa applications.
Ruling out any possibility of a special deal for Ireland, Mr Ahern said an amnesty solely for the Irish was "not on". Mr Ahern estimated there were up to 20,000 Irish people living illegally in the US.
Fine Gael's spokesman for Gaeltacht affairs, Michael Ring
The chairman of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR) Niall O'Dowd said this morning Mr Ahern's remarks were "totally misinformed".
He said those representing the undocumented, including the ILIR, were not campaigning for an amnesty. Rather, they wanted a bilateral agreement between the US and Ireland such as the deals brokered by Australia, Singapore and Chile in recent years. Mexico is currently working on a similar deal, he added.
Mr O'Dowd said the ILIR had submitted a proposal to address the situation to the Irish authorities. He claimed the Government agreed to bring it to the US authorities but had failed so far to do so. "We have been told by senior figures on Capitol Hill that the proposal was not put forward," he told RTÉ's Morning Irelandprogramme .
He also questioned whether Mr Ahern had any real "clout" in the US or was just engaged in "airy-fairy" exchanges with US leaders on St Patrick's Day.
Fine Gael's community, rural and Gaeltacht affairs spokesman Michael Ring accused Mr Ahern of "washing his hands" of the undocumented Irish.
"It is unacceptable to tell them they have to return home," he said. "Many have been living in the US for years, and it is not feasible for them to come back to Ireland to apply for a visa which they may not even get."
He accused the Government of failing in its obligation to push a Dáil motion on the undocumented Irish, which had received cross-party support, with the US authorities.
Meanwhile, SDLP East Derry Assembly member John Dallat claimed Mr Ahern had "thrown in the towel" on the issue. He said many of the undocumented had fled the troubles in Northern Ireland and been unable to face returning when their visas ran out.
"Perhaps on reflection [Mr Ahern] will accept that there is a case for thousands of Irish people who have made their homes in the United States and he has an important role in resolving it," Mr Dallat said.