Citizens of new EU member-states will be allowed immediate freedom to live and work in Ireland upon enlargement, the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, will announce today.
The news of the Government's decision to allow new EU citizens full access to the Irish labour force from next year is likely to revive the controversy over the immigration issue which dominated last year's Nice Treaty debate on EU enlargement.
At present, workers from non-EU countries require work permits or work visas in Ireland, while those from EU member-states do not. Existing member-states had been given the right to restrict the access of citizens of new member-states for up to seven years from the date of accession.
The Tánaiste will today confirm that the Government will not exercise this option to control access for workers from accession countries after enlargement, due in May 2004.
The decision to allow full mobility to new EU citizens puts Ireland in line with such countries as the UK, Spain, Denmark and Sweden.
Today's announcement will clarify the Government's position on the issue following some conflicting indications in the past year.
The Taoiseach indicated last September that the Government had reserved the right to require work permits from citizens of the accession countries after they joined the EU, depending on prevailing conditions in the Irish labour market. This followed controversy over the immigration issue which dominated debate on the Nice Treaty for several months last summer.
The Taoiseach's stance last September appeared to introduce a caveat which had not been present in the Government's position as explained in a letter six months earlier from the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, to his party colleague, Mr Tom Kitt.
In March 2002, Mr Cowen wrote: "Ireland took the decision to allow the citizens of new EU member-states full and free access to live and work here from the first day of accession." Mr Cowen said the Government did not believe that immediate access would lead to distortions to domestic labour markets.
Following these contrasting signals, the Cabinet took its final decision on the issue last week.
It is obliged to convey this to the EU Commission in advance of next month's deadline for the EU accession countries to sign their respective treaties. Ten countries - Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia - are set to join the EU on May 1st, 2004. Cyprus and Malta are automatically entitled to freedom of movement so the arrangement to be announced today will apply only to citizens of the remaining eight countries.
A leading anti-Nice Treaty campaigner, Mr Anthony Coughlan, last summer predicted the Government could be forced to bear the costs of potentially heavy East European migration to Ireland from 2004 without any Dáil debate or public consultation on the issue.