Language and citizenship

Sir, – I was a migrant in the UK, Italy, Germany and Belgium for more than 12 years. For me this was a mutually beneficial arrangement. I gained experience and benefited financially. Learning Italian, German and French were for me a necessary part of living in those countries despite the fact that one can get by in English. By doing so it opened many doors, not least to understand the cultures and attitudes of peoples and integrate to social groups. Yes, I did contribute to the national economy but never thought in any sense that it allowed me to expect citizenship simply by being there. I agree fully with the expectation that citizenship in all of those countries based on residency has a number of requirements. All expect minimum language standards at level A2 (Belgium in French, Dutch or German) or B1 (UK, Italy and Germany) in the Common European Framework and require proof of financial independence. There are other conditions, including a clean criminal record, knowledge of the legal system and society. This is the case right across Europe and beyond. Citizenship of a country is a privilege and does indeed bring rights but, as many often forget, it should bring responsibilities. For me, these include a strong knowledge of language and culture (and you can't have one without the other). I would also expect prospective citizens to have knowledge of our history and society and commit to our democratic system. I cannot see how introducing similar requirements as those across the EU here can be considered anti-migrant. I expect that most of those who have gained Irish citizenship through naturalisation would not have objected nor found such requirements insurmountable. – Yours, etc, CONOR O'CARROLL, Donnybrook, Dublin 4.