The referendum on Irish citizenship which will take place on June 11th is not related to any "electoral prospects", the Minister for Justice has said.
Mr McDowell was speaking this evening as he announced the Government's plans for the referendum, which, if passed, will restrict the right of citizenship to the children of non-nationals born here.
A draft Irish Nationality and Citizenship (Amendment) Bill will be put before the Oireachtas if the referendum amending Article 9 of the Constitution is passed.
The bill provides that in the case of a child born to non-national parents, at least one of the parents will have to have been resident in Ireland for three of the four years preceding the birth of the child before the child becomes entitled to Irish citizenship. It will not apply to anyone born before the date of enactment.
Where either parent of a child born anywhere in Ireland is a UK national or a long-term resident of the UK, the child will be entitled to Irish citizenship "regardless of the length of residence of the parent in Ireland".
The minister said that if the current position continued, there would be "a new and somewhat unlikely diaspora" conferring citizenship not only on themselves, but on their descendants. "I don't think it's reasonable to leave that in place," he said.
Mr McDowell said it was important the debate on the referendum proceeded on the basis of "an informed view" of what the issues are. The concept of citizenship went "well beyond entitlement to a passport", he said.
"Indeed, many of Ireland's finest citizens, particularly in years gone by, have never held a passport. Citizenship is rather a term which embodies the concept of membership of a modern nation state. Citizenship in Ireland was initially a fundamentally important legal vehicle used to convey, first the Free State, and then the Republic's legal and political independence. Its purpose is given in Article 9.2 of the Constitution which imposes on all citizens the fundamental political duties of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State.
"So while citizenship is not about cultural uniformity, nor is it born out of some narrow and out-dated view of what it means to be Irish, it is nevertheless the essence of our sovereignty as a nation."
Questioned about the political timing of the referendum, Mr McDowell said he believed the day of the local and European Parliament elections was the appropriate time. It would not have been appropriate to hold it on the same day as the presidential election, because this would put potential candidates for the presidential election in the position where they would either have to comment on the proposals or remain silent on them.
Mr McDowell also said he did not believe any candidate in the forthcoming elections would gain any electoral advantage by taking either a 'Yes' or a 'No' position on the referendum.
Mr McDowell said the law would "compare favourably" with that of most EU member states. If it becomes law, the citizenship bill will not be retrospective and children who have already acquired Irish citizenship through birth here will not be affected.
The Tánaiste, Ms Harney, said the referendum provided for some of the most liberal laws on citizenship anywhere in Europe. She said the Government had only made the decision to hold the referendum after a great deal of consultation and discussion.
Opposition parties have criticised the Government for holding the referendum on the same date as the European and local elections. They claim the Government is deliberately exploiting the immigration issue in an election atmosphere. Civil rights campaigners have also objected to the referendum, claiming it is "racist" in its objectives.