Voters have taken a middle course on allowing parents of Irish-bornchildren to stay here, writes Mark Brennock, Chief Political Correspondent.
Voters would allow some non-national parents of Irish-born children remain in Ireland despite the recent Supreme Court ruling, and don't like the deal the State did with religious orders on compensation for child abuse.
The Government is still considering how to respond to the Supreme Court decision in relation to the residency rights of non-national parents of children born in Ireland.
This Irish Times/MRBI poll shows the public willing to accept a reasonably pragmatic, compassionate approach.
The poll follows many well-publicised reports suggesting that some aspirant immigrants have come to Ireland on the brink of going into labour in order to take advantage of the Irish legal position. These reported incidents arose from the position whereby all children born on the island were entitled to citizenship, and the expectation that their parents would therefore receive residency rights.
The Supreme Court ruling that such parents were not automatically entitled to residency has left the Government facing a decision on how to deal with such people. Offered a choice between the three main options in this latest poll, most voters have chosen the middle-ground position that some non-nationals whose children were born in Ireland should be allowed stay and some deported, depending on the amount of time they have been here. Some 63 per cent take this view.
Just 18 per cent took the hard- line position that all of those already in Ireland should be deported. The extreme liberal position - that all those already in Ireland should be allowed to stay - is taken by 19 per cent. One per cent have no opinion.
Younger voters are more likely to take this liberal position, the poll shows.
Some 26 per cent of them said all already in Ireland should be allowed stay, 64 per cent said they should be dealt with on a case by case basis, while 18 per cent said all should be deported.
There are also interesting differences among the age groups on the deal between the State and religious orders on the compensation of victims of child abuse in institutions. Overall, 55 per cent disapprove of the deal, 33 per cent approve, with 12 per cent having no opinion.
Under the deal, the religious congregations will pay €128 million towards compensating victims, with the State paying the rest. The religious orders' payment consists of €41 million in cash, with the remainder coming from property already transferred to the State and properties yet to be transferred. The deal has faced sustained criticism from some victims' groups and the Labour Party in particular for capping the orders' contribution while giving the taxpayer an open-ended liability.
The deal is most strongly opposed in the 35 - 49 age group. Some 60 per cent of this group opposes it, 28 per cent supports it and 11 per cent have no opinion. One can speculate as to why this age group disapproves of the agreement more strongly than others. For example, this is largely the age group that would have been in school at the time when much of the abuse that will be at the centre of the compensation claims took place.
While the abuse to be compensated for under this scheme took place in residential institutions, many of those who were in the mainstream education system during the same period were familiar with the culture in which it took place.
In addition this is the age group most likely to have young children now.
Interestingly, in the youngest age group - those aged 18-24 - a greater number (42 per cent) approves of the deal than disapproves (40 per cent). Some 18 per cent have no opinion.