Over 50 Laois people become Irish citizens

More than 50 people who have made Laois their home were among thousands to become citizens of Ireland at a special event in Kerry.

Some 4,000 people became new Irish citizens at ceremonies held over two days in Killarney.

A total of 53 new Irish citizens have addresses in Laois. 

The ceremonies were held in the INEC Killarney on June 19 and 20 and applicants from 139 countries around the world will be conferred as Irish citizens.

Citizenship ceremonies were first introduced in 2011 in order to mark the occasion of the granting of citizenship in a dignified and solemn manner.

Since then, there has been a total of 164 ceremonies with people from over 180 countries receiving their certificates of naturalisation. To date, including minors, approximately 161,000 people have received Irish citizenship since 2011. 

County and numbers of applications:

• Dublin

  450

• Cork

  261

• Dublin 15

  202

• Meath

  151

• Kildare

  152

• Galway

  121

• Dublin 24

  118

• Louth

  112

• Cork City

  108

• Wicklow

  107

• Dublin 8

  102

• Dublin 18

  93

• Kerry

  85

• Westmeath

  77

• Dublin 7

  76

• Dublin 1

  72

• Wexford

  72

• Tipperary

  70

• Limerick City

  67

• Dublin 13

  60

• Limerick

  60

• Clare

  59

• Mayo

  58

• Donegal

  57

• Kilkenny

  56

• Waterford City

  56

• Dublin 4

  55

• Laois

  53

• Dublin 11

  51

• Waterford

  50

• Galway City

  49

• Dublin 6

  49

• Cavan

  48

• Dublin 9

  46

• Dublin 16

  42

• Carlow

  41

• Monaghan

  40

• Dublin 22

  40

• Dublin 12

  40

• Roscommon

  39

• Sligo

  37

• Dublin 14

  37

• Antrim

  36

• Dublin 5

  36

• Dublin 3

  31

• Longford

  30

• Offaly

  29

• Down

  23

• Dublin 6W

  23

• Dublin 2

  21

• Dublin 17

  16

• Dublin 20

  13

• Leitrim

  13

• Derry

  7

• Tyrone

  7

• Dublin 10

  7

• Armagh

  5

• Fermanagh

  2

• Total

  3918

1,000 Ukrainians in Laois which has welcomed a relatively small number of refugees

Minister for Justice McEntee said: “I congratulate and welcome our newest citizens on this milestone day in your lives. This marks the end of a journey and the beginning of a new one. Becoming an Irish citizen will guarantee certain fundamental rights under our Constitution. These rights are many and varied, but they will protect you, your family and your freedom.”

I encourage each new citizen to embrace your civic duty. It is an essential aspect of life in Ireland. It will empower you to become more engaged in civil society, whether it be in your local community or at a national level, some of you may choose to run for office in the coming years. Active involvement in the community will ensure everyone has a voice and will help strengthen our democracy.”