Perth Consulate

‘Mission’ not possible for Perth BY LLOYD GORMAN

Diplomatically speaking, the Irish community in Western Australia appear to have slipped off a list of priorities for the Irish government. Perth was bypassed this year for the traditional St. Patrick’s Day celebrations led by the state’s visiting government representative to Australia, Galway West TD and minister of state Hildergarde Naughton for the annual excuse to exercise our Irishness and drum up trade and opportunities as well. Honorary consulate of Ireland Marty Kavanagh told Irish Scene this was only because Western Australia (and New Zealand which is paired with WA) were still both “somewhat closed” because of Covid restrictions. “Whilst St. Patrick’s Day visits are a matter for government, I see no reason why we won’t have a minister next year, as we’ve always had one, at least in my time in the role, the last seven years. WA is always high on the government’s list because of the diaspora and the long links between WA and Ireland.” That connection and Perth’s place in the bigger scheme of things actually came up in the workings of Dáil Éireann (Irish parliament) recently. It was first raised during a sitting of the Joint Committee of Foreign Affairs and Defence last November, at which foreign affairs minister Simon Coveney appeared for questioning. Charlie Flanagan, the chair of the committee and a former minister for foreign affairs himself, had a lot of questions for Mr Coveney, including one specifically about Western Australia. Mr Flanagan – a Fine Gael TD for Laois Offaly – said Ireland’s relationship with Australia was good and had been for ‘many decades’. “That will continue but, having regard to our diaspora in Western Australia and the economic relationship between Ireland and Western Australia, will consideration be given towards the establishment of a consulate in Perth?,” Mr Flanagan asked. A consulate, embassy or similar set up can also be called a ‘Mission’. Mr Coveney’s lengthy answer included a response to the question about WA. “Regarding Australia, I am familiar with the Irish diaspora in Perth,” Mr Coveney, a TD for Cork South Central

said. “One of them is my brother. He is a doctor there, like many other young Irish people and their families. The Department is assessing where the next phase of expansion will go. We have opened many new representations in the last few years, from Chile to Colombia, from Toronto to Auckland, with a range in the United States, Manchester, Cardiff, Frankfurt, Lyon, Kyiv, Rabat and Liberia. It is a long list. We are trying to finalise the next phase of areas where we think enhancing Ireland’s footprint makes sense politically, economically and with regard to the diaspora. We need to think about Western Australia. I do not want to pre-announce anything. A recommendation will come to me and we will take it from there. It might be interesting to come back to the committee and get members’ views on those choices. I would certainly welcome a broadening of perspective.” Irish Scene reported this exchange in the January/February edition (Could Perth get a full consulate). Mr Flanagan’s curiosity about the subject had not faded when the committee met again on March 10, again with the minister in the hot seat. “Last year, we mentioned the likelihood or need for a consular office in Perth, Western Australia,” Mr Flanagan said. “I do not see that on the list. Is there any means by which a feasibility study might be undertaken, having regard to anecdotal evidence and indeed statistics that would show a very large diaspora community in Western Australia? Why does an office in Perth not appear to have gained the support of the Department at this stage?.” Mr Coveney replied that some 15 new embassies and consulates had opened since the (2020) launch of the Global Irish Strategy. Wellington in New Zealand was one of the new embassies while there were “multiple new consulates” across America, one in Vancouver, western Canada as well as others across the EU and even some in the UK since Brexit. He also had an update regarding the situation in Western Australia. “The way this works is that we make decisions 12 months before we are likely to action them,” Mr Coveney explained. “Therefore, when the Chairman [Mr Flanagan] says he does not see Perth on the list, that is because it is being considered as part of a package which is not yet signed off on but which I will bring to the Government in the coming weeks as suggestions we are making for new representations that should progress next year.”

Foreign affairs minister Simon Conveney.

So no doubt then Perth was a contender for a diplomatic upgrade at that point in time. Irish Scene contacted deputy Flanagan about the potential development for the Irish community in WA. On April 5 Mr Flanagan raised it again in the Dail, this time as a written question directly to Mr Coveney: “if he plans to approve the establishment of a resident full-time Irish consulate in Western Australia; and if he will make a statement on the matter”. It was not to be a case of third time lucky! If the minister – who would be the ultimate decision maker – had previously sounded enthusiastic or encouraging about the prospects for Perth he bluntly dismissed the idea now. “Our network of diplomatic missions in the Asia Pacific Region is kept under constant review, in the context of commitments set out in the Programme for Government, in Global Ireland 2025 and in our Asia Pacific Strategy,” Mr Coveney said in his answer. “In the Asia Pacific Region, we have recently expanded our network through opening a Consulate General in Mumbai and an Embassy in Manila. At present, there are no plans to open a new Consulate General in Western Australia. In conjunction with our Embassy in Canberra and State Agencies, our Honorary Consul in Perth currently provides consular services and assistance to Irish citizens, supports local Irish community efforts and assists in developing trade and economic relations with Western Australia”. In the short window between March 10 and April 5 the minister’s thinking had changed quite abruptly it seems, but no explanation was forthcoming. Mr Flanagan told Irish Scene this reply was at odds with the information previously given by the minister and that he had contacted the Mr Coveney’s office for clarification. At time of going to press there was no update. As mentioned Perth has an Honorary Consul, a role performed for some years now by Corkman and lawyer Marty Kavanagh. As stated Marty and ambassador Tim Mawe in Canberra work together in their respective roles and amongst other things both men produce a regular column addressing the Irish community in this magazine, contributions we are grateful for. In terms of work done here on the ground Marty and his people are on the front line helping Irish citizens when and where they can with routine administrative matters and often urgent emergency and stressful situations. Going above and beyond might not be in the job description but it is part and parcel of what honorary consulates do. With a meagre stipend of between one and two thousand Euros/dollars for out of pocket expenses they are not in it for the money or an easy life as tricky situations pop up all the time. In many ways they might well be the most efficient and best value for money of any government funded service around. As a community we would be lost without them and the ability to get stuff done without necessarily the hassle of needing to go through the embassy in Canberra or through a government department in Ireland in the first instance. Indeed, this proved to be the case several years ago. Marty’s predecessor in the role was the late Michael Nolan, who was made honorary consulate here in 1976, a role he performed dilligently for the next thirty three years, before retiring.

In his time Michael – who died in late 2020 – processed and issued an astonishing 250,000 passports himself. Irish passports are now all done

online and no longer go through embassies, consulates or honorary consulates. “The only exception is ETC “Emergency Travel Certificates”- which are one way travel documents issued to Ireland in emergencies such as death or illness,” explained Marty. “Subject to the embassy’s approval we issue a significant number of ETCs in Perth. This is a major advantage for WA as it means people can get home very quickly in an emergency. We’ve had occasions to have an ETC provided and the citizen on a flight within four hours. As you may recall it was a few years before Michal Nolan was replaced and there were many occasions where Irish citizens had to travel to Canberra to obtain an ETC.” So a good honorary consulate is worth their weight in gold. But there is a difference with a consulate general. One is a private citizen with the means and authority locally to carry out the role as and when the need arises. The other is a more formal and permanent arrangement with the full time role filled by a staffer from the Department of Foreign Affairs with a support team and a dedicated and a fully resourced place of business. Consulates are opened in addition to an embassy in the capital city, as extra diplomatic representation in larger cities or regions with a strong diaspora population. One of the many functions of a consulate is the processing of visas for its nationals in the host territory, as well as providing information and guidance about immigration requirements and the replacement or applications for passports. Visas processed by the honorary consulate are for non-nationals who require a visa to visit Ireland. Consulate General’s also have a brief to develop trade links and commercial opportunities for Irish companies and entrepreneurs. Where an honorary consulate has their own premises or office – as Marty does in the CBD with his law firm – they can use it to host receptions or have the option to hire a venue for gatherings. Consulate general offices are regularly used to host events and functions in-house. Perth has had an honorary consulate for decades, with the role carried out prior to Marty as we have seen already by the late Mr Nolan. Sydney has had a consulate general for 22 years. Then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern opened the Mission during an official visit to Australia in 2000. It was based in an up market city centre office block for the first few years and in 2006 it moved to 32 storey office building just a short walk to the Darling Harbour ferry wharf. A history of the Sydney office on dfa.ie said: “It was one of a number of new Irish diplomatic and consular Missions opened at that time as part of the Irish Government’s new Asia Strategy, and in Sydney’s case in recognition of the large Irish and Irish-Australian community in New South Wales.” As Mr Flanagan’s original question pointed out, and as anybody living in Western Australia knows well there is a large (and active) number of Irish nationals and a big Irish Australian community in Perth and across the state. Perth must have ticked enough boxes for it to be deemed – and spoken about publicly – a strong contender. At the opening of a Consulate General of Ireland in Manchester in October last October minister Coveney described it as a “major step forward” for the region and relations between Ireland and the UK. Everything else he said about why that was the case could have just as easily be applied to Ireland and Western Australia. “The links between Ireland and this part of the world are profound, and uplifting, and have been built over generations,” Mr Coveney said. “There are few facets of life where connections cannot be found and my hope is that with the opening of this new diplomatic mission we will strengthen existing partnerships, and forge new ones, across every sector and area of activity.” Irish people in Western Australia are not on an equal footing with their counterparts in New South Wales. An opportunity for increased representation and to advance the local Irish community has been lost as a result of the decision to pull back from a consular upgrade in Perth.