As all residents may vote in local elections, Ireland has among the most favourable conditions regarding political participation for migrants in the EU and, according to the latest Migrant Policy Index (MIPEX, 2011), on this indicator, ‘Immigrants benefit from Ireland’s traditionally inclusive political community, a strong point for its integration policy. Tying third with the Netherlands after Finland and Norway, Ireland leads on local voting rights’. Provisions for the participation of foreign nationals in local elections go as far back as 1963...
The Minister for Justice and Equality has ‘absolute discretion’ in granting an application for a certificate of naturalisation and may choose to waive certain conditions for naturalisation.7At €950.00, the fees for naturalisation are among the highest in Europe and North America (MIPEX, 2011). Theaverage time from the date of application to a decision has been rather long at 23 months, but is currently being reduced. Since 2011, large collective citizenship ceremonies, where new citizens make a declaration of fidelity to the Irish nation and loyalty to the State and receive their certificate of naturalisation, have replaced individual declarations before a court. Finally, Irish citizens may hold the citizenship of another country without giving up their Irish citizenship...Read more
Dublin City Interfaith Forum: Embodiment of Tolerance in Discourses and Practices...
Thomas Huddleston
Policy Analyst, Migration Policy Group
Thomas Huddleston is a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Group, a European think-and-do-tank. He coordinates MPG’s research for European cooperation on national integration policies, including the second and third editions of the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX) (published in February 2011) and the third edition of the European Commission’s Handbook on Integration.
