Mary Coughlan Welfare limit move
The Minister for Social Welfare, Mary Coughlan, has said she will be proposing changes in the social welfare code after Britain introduced restrictions on its system to protect it from abuse after EU enlargement on 1 May.
Ms Coughlan said she was concerned that Ireland would now be the only country that had not put in place protections for its welfare system.
She said the changes she would be urging would be no less robust than those introduced in Britain.
The minister said in a statement that, due to Ireland's common travel area with Britain, it was now important that some conditions be put in place.
Fine Gael calls for restrictions
Earlier, Fine Gael's Foreign Affairs Spokesman, Gay Mitchell, said some restrictions on migrants from Eastern Europe after their accession to the EU on 1 May will be necessary.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio, Mr Mitchell said that because of the mobility of labour and social welfare implications, people could qualify in Ireland while working in the UK.
He said there could not be a situation where Ireland's social welfare system supplements the UK workforce, although he added the changes should be minimalist and humane.
