Newfoundland-Irish festival celebrates links
Thursday, July 5th, 2007Links between Newfoundland and Ireland were celebrated in Wexford recently, with the third annual festival organised by the Waterford Estuary-Newfoundland Festival of the Sea Committee.
The festival alternates every year between Ireland and Newfoundland. A delegation from Newfoundland visited for a series of events held in Wexford, Waterford and Kilkenny. These included workshops aimed at enhancing links between commercial fishing enterprises between the two regions, a community development conference, and a history conference exploring links between Kilkenny and Newfoundland.
Nearly half of Newfoundlanders today are of Irish descent; during the pre-Famine era a large number of people from Ireland’ s southeast settled there. The festival is meant to foster collaboration in the cultural, educational and business sectors. Organisers say the festival’s three pillars are:
- celebrating the history and culture of the linked communities
- promoting local, sustainable community amenities
- identifying and responding to community development issues.
Visit these sites for more information:
- Newfoundlandireland.com – includes a journal of this year’s festival.
- Festivalofthesea.ie
Is construction slowdown increasing emigration?
Wednesday, July 4th, 2007Irish tradespeople are moving to Australia and New Zealand in increasing numbers, according to a report in the Irish Examiner.
Migration.ie spokesperson Edwina Shanahan says that about 4,000 Irish people moved to Australia and New Zealand in 2006. “There has been a steady overall increase, but particularly among tradespeople. For most, the main reason for moving is better job prospects and quality of life”.
While Migration.ie says the increase in tradespeople leaving is a result of a slowdown in the Irish construction industry – a claim disputed by the Construction Federation of Ireland.
The CFI acknowledges that the housing sector has slowed in recent months, but says the commercial and public sector has grown, resulting in static employment in the construction over the last six months. There are about 290,000 employed in construction currently, up from 260,000 two years ago.
 The Economic and Social Research Institute says the economy will slow down this year, and says that employment growth will fall to 58,000 next year, down from 87,000 new jobs in 2006.
 Read the report in the Irish Examiner.
Returning Irish being refused benefits
Wednesday, July 4th, 2007The issue of emigrants are being refused benefits under the Habitual Residence Condition needs to be addressed says Éan member agency Emigrant Advice in today’s Irish Times.
The paper reports that Brian Flynn, director of the Social Welfare Appeals Office, “said appeals officers were concerned at ‘the deteriorating standards of decision-making and poor quality of file presentation’ by Department of Social and Family Affairs and HSE staff dealing with cases coming before them on appeal”. Mr Flynn made the comments at the launch of his 2006 annual report.
Joe O’Brien of Emigrant Advice said that his agency saw returning emigrants being refused social welfare payments. “Between May 2004 and April 2006, 880 Irish people were refused a payment because they were not classified as habitually resident in Ireland. We see returning Irish emigrants being refused payments because of this rule. ”
Journalist Alison Healy adds that O’Brien “referred to one case where a returned emigrant was refused social welfare, then granted a pyament on appeal but then refused when he went to collect it.”
See the full story in the Irish Times (subscription required)
Irish undocumented speak of frustrated hopes
Monday, July 2nd, 2007The Sunday Business Post carries an article on the failure of the US immigration reform efforts. The article, by Susan Mitchell, interviews several undocumented Irish immigrants, who described the pain of being unable to return home for visits.
Immigration reform efforts to continue, says ILIR leader
Monday, July 2nd, 2007Leading US immigration reform campainger and Irish Voice publisher Niall O’Dowd has urged those fighting for change to continue their efforts.
In a statement on the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform website, Mr O’Dowd says that the issue of comprehensive immigration reform is dead until after the November 2008 elections. He has indicated that the group may pursue another strategy: “We need to follow another path in order to achieve our aims. We were unable to do that while comprehensive reform, involving 12 million undocumented, was under consideration”.
Mr O’Dowd adds that it took three years to win passage of the Morrison visas in the late 1980s. He says he appreciates the response of the Irish government and says the group will now be calling on powerful friends in Congress.
Read the full statement at the Irish Lobby’s website.
Government gives $1.3 million to US groups
Wednesday, June 27th, 2007Grants of nearly $1.3 million for US Irish organisations were announced yesterday by Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern. The money will go to 13 groups that are engaged in the provision of support, information and advisory services.
The Minister said:
“I am delighted to allocate increased funding, again this year, to the Irish immigration centres in the US. These grants reflect the Government’s continuing commitment to Irish communities abroad, particularly to supporting the vulnerable members of our community in the US. �
The Government has given a total of $1.431 million to Irish immigrant groups in the US; in April, Mr Ahern announced grants of $50,000 for the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform and $100,000 for the Coalition of Irish Immigration Centres in the US.
The funded organisations include:
- Aisling Irish Centre
- Emerald Isle Immigration Centre
- New York Irish Centre
- Project Irish Outreach
- Irish Immigration and Pastoral Centre, Philadelphia
- Irish Apostolate
- Irish Immigration Centre, Boston
- Irish Pastoral Centre, BostonÂ
- Irish Immigration Pastoral Centre, San Francisco
- Seattle Irish Immigration Support Group
- Irish Outreach San Diego
- Irish Connect Initiative
- Chicago Irish Immigrant Support
For more information, read the press release.
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