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Fears over 'an abrupt end to the J1 system' are getting real

Taoiseach Enda Kenny says US officials “seem bent” on changing the rules.

TAOISEACH ENDA KENNY has warned that the number of Irish students travelling on J1 visas could be seriously hurt if US authorities decide to tighten the rules.

Speaking in the Dáil yesterday, Kenny said that “issues that have arisen” have led to the current unclear situation.

The Taoiseach may have been referring to a number of high-profile incidents in which property was damaged by Irish students on J1 visas in the US.

“Because of a series of issues that have arisen, the authorities that issue J1 visas seem to be bent on introducing a requirement for pre-employment for young people before they go,” Kenny said in response to a question from Denis Naughten TD.

Kenny said that a pre-employment rule would be a “dramatic” change to the system and would effectively be “an abrupt ending to the J1 system as we know it”.

The Taoiseach went on to estimate that it would lead to “60% or 80%” fewer Irish students availing of the J1 programme.

Kenny added that another potential problem arising from this would be that Irish people who travel to the US on a holiday visa may end up working there illegally.

The Taoiseach said that he’s already spoken to US Ambassador Kevin O’Malley about the J1 visa issue and will do so again because it’s vital to our interests:

I firmly believe that the J1 system has been important in keeping that connection alive in the modern sense with young people in university and throughout the country working in America for the summer and so on. It keeps the connections between our countries very much alive currently and for the future.

Read: Ireland’s youngest minister slams Trump and his proposal to scrap the J-1 >

Read: The New York Times says it never intended to blame victims of the Berkeley tragedy >

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    Mute michael
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    Dec 5th 2015, 9:10 AM

    Someone needs to draw a line under this mess

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    Mute Padraig Piarais Mac AnTsaoir
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    Dec 5th 2015, 8:51 AM

    You can lead a horse to water, but a pencil must be lead.

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    Mute Dave Hennessy
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    Dec 5th 2015, 9:56 AM

    You are a Marx brothers fan I see….

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    Mute Bob Freeman
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    Dec 5th 2015, 9:16 AM

    To be fair I can understand what’s happening over there. There was due to be a shortage of Mitsubishis in my town one bank holiday weekend and everyone started panic buying too.

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    Mute Bigus Diccus
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    Dec 5th 2015, 10:07 AM

    Any speckled Crayolas?

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    Mute Lennie
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    Dec 5th 2015, 8:51 AM

    Why doesn’t somebody setup a website and business selling pencils to the Japanese?

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    Mute Gary Kennedy
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    Dec 5th 2015, 8:53 AM

    I have written better stories than this.

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    Mute Eoin Fleming
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    Dec 5th 2015, 9:16 AM

    ‘been rocked by a pencil supply crisis that is drawing a backlash’
    I see what you did there.

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    Mute Oisin O'Riordan
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    Dec 5th 2015, 8:52 AM

    The orientals…a mad bunch of lads.

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    Mute Gary Cahalan
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    Dec 5th 2015, 8:56 AM

    The world is fecked

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    Mute Dave Meagher
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    Dec 5th 2015, 11:09 AM

    Pew thank God they don’t have anything like nuclear reactors leaking into the pacific or anything serious like that.

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    Mute zebedee
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    Dec 5th 2015, 11:44 AM

    The company which “traces it’s roots back to the 19th century”…. I see what you did there.

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    Mute Daisy Chainsaw
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    Dec 5th 2015, 12:15 PM

    I’ll swap a packet of colouring pencils for an Adele ticket!!

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    Mute Ruadhán MacEoin
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    Dec 5th 2015, 12:51 PM

    But it’s so great to have good stories about really important matters like pencil sales in Japan, when the banking enquiry has collapsed and the Irish people continue to carry 43% of the cost of the Eurozone crisis. More stories like this please, The Journal!

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