Survey says citizenship rules ‘fair’
By Anna Cinzia Dellagiacoma and Chinedu Onyejelem
Nearly one year after Minister for Justice Alan Shatter introduced major changes to the citizenship application process, the majority of people in Ireland believe that the conditions required to gain Irish citizenship are fair, according to a recent survey conducted by Metro Éireann.
The minister decides applications for citizenship on the condition, among other requirements, that the applicant is an adult of good character who has lived in the country for at least five years (or three years for spouses of Irish nationals). Successful applicants are also expected to pledge allegiance to the Irish State at a special citizenship ceremony introduced last year. Some 16,000 immigrants were granted Irish citizenship based on these conditions in 2011, but this number is still below the EU average. By June this year about 11,500 new citizens had received certificates of naturalisation.
The single-question poll - which also asked respondents to indicate their nationality – asked people if they agreed with the conditions or think they are too generous.
Out of 142 responses, an overwhelming 76.8 per cent said they were in favour of the current conditions, which they also said were fair.
The respondents includenative Irish and immigrants both already naturalised and ordinarily resident in Ireland, as well as some currently awaiting a decision on their applications.
In their optional remarks, many of those who agreed to the present conditions said Minister Shatter should be applauded for speeding up the citizenship process and allowing many immigrants who are qualified for Irish citizenship to actually achieve it.
Others called for a reduction in the cost of citizenship applications which, between the fee for application (€175) and the naturalisation certificate (€950), tops the €1,000 mark before even accounting for passport application fees.
Some EU nationals who responded to the survey said the benefits for them becoming Irish were unclear, other than voting in national elections and referendums.
The minister’s power to revoke the citizenship of naturalised persons should they be convicted of major crimes in Ireland was also highlighted in the remarks by some respondents.
Meanwhile, 5.6 per cent of respondents – mainly native Irish – said the conditions are too generous.
In their remarks, the respondents urged Minister Shatter to introduce more stringent conditions such as compulsory English language examinations, as well as a citizenship test for those seeking to naturalise here.
They also suggested employing a carefully calibrated points-based system based on length of residency and contributions to Ireland.
A further 9.2 per cent said they don’t know whether the conditions for given Irish citizenship were suitable or too generous because they do not have enough information about the process.
And 5.6 per cent of respondents, both native Irish and immigrants, said the survey question was too restrictive and did not allow them to answer, although they indicated their belief that the current conditions for gaining Irish citizenship are too strict.
About 2.8 per cent of respondents gave an undetermined response.
