Senator daly Appointed as first ever Senate Spokesperson for Irish Overseas & Diaspora
In early 2013, Senator Daly asked the current Taoiseach Micheál Martin to appoint him to the position of spokesperson for Irish overseas and the Diaspora. It marked the first time any political party in the state appointed a member of either the Dáil or the Seanad to such a position. Later in July of that year Mark published the first policy paper for any political party dedicated to the issue of Irish overseas and the Diaspora. The conclusion of this first policy paper made a number of recommendations, one of the most significant of which was the need for the appointment of a Minister for the Irish overseas and the Diaspora. At the time there were 43 countries with either Ministry-level or Subministry level Diaspora institutions, many of these countries had Diasporas far smaller than our own in Ireland.
Over the following two years most of the political parties in the state adopted this policy. In July of 2014, the Government of the day led by Fine Gael for the first time in the history of the state appointed Jimmy Deenihan as the first Minister with responsibility for Diaspora. This was a positive step in the right direction of what is an ongoing journey which continues to necessitate further action. The other key recommendation in Mark's report was voting rights for those Irish outside the state.
Over the following two years most of the political parties in the state adopted this policy. In July of 2014, the Government of the day led by Fine Gael for the first time in the history of the state appointed Jimmy Deenihan as the first Minister with responsibility for Diaspora. This was a positive step in the right direction of what is an ongoing journey which continues to necessitate further action. The other key recommendation in Mark's report was voting rights for those Irish outside the state.