EU: The Cabinet is to get a top-level review of the implications of European Union enlargement on the State, including housing and social welfare costs, within weeks, it has emerged, write Mark Hennessy and Kitty Holland
The examination, by an inter-departmental committee officials led by the Department of the Taoiseach, began in late autumn, a spokesman for the Government told The Irish Times last night.
"They have been looking at this for months. They are not looking at the impact on the labour market, but, rather, what happens on housing, health, social welfare fronts," he said.
However, the Government insisted that it was not changing its mind about offering people from new EU states the right to live and work here freely from May 1st, unlike every other member- state.
"The inter-departmental committee has been saying that that they did not see any particular threat. Because of what is happening elsewhere they may have to reassess that. But we have always said that restrictions would be put in place if they were necessary," the spokesman said.
The British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, said this week that people from the new countries would be able to work freely, though restrictions would be put in place to prevent welfare "scrounging".
However, Mr Anthony Coughlan, of the National Platform, said the public would now look with interest to see how long the Government takes to change its mind, and impose some curbs on movement.
During the Nice Treaty campaign, Mr Coughlan was sharply criticised by the Government and by some anti-Nice campaigners after he insisted that the free movement offered by EU enlargement would cause problems for Ireland.
"Will Messrs Dick Roche, Michael McDowell, Proinsias de Rossa and David Begg continue to resist pressure to join the 'racists'? They implied that Anthony Coughlan of the National Platform and Justin Barrett of the No to Nice Campaign were stirring up racism and anti-immigrant sentiment," said Mr Coughlan.
"The Government's policy of extending Irish citizens' rights of work, domicile and social maintenance to east European migrants when all other EU states were not doing so, was manifestly foolish, and would cause Ireland problems and embarrassment in time, as now looks like happening," he added. Every existing EU state should operate by the same rules he said.
However, Labour Party TD Ms Joan Burton said she did not believe that "a flood of people" would come to Ireland from the EU accession states after May 1st, although the problem would have to be kept under review.
SIPTU spokesman Mr Mike Jennings said an atmosphere of "hysteria" was being created by the media.