Fine Gael Dun Laoghaire Deputy will attend the Global Diaspora Forum in the Fitzpatrick Castle Hotel in Killiney tomorrow morning (Tuesday), before welcoming the Irish Elderly Emigrants Tour UK in Glasthule, as part of the Gathering 2013, tomorrow afternoon.

Speaking in advance of the events, Deputy Mitchell O’Connor said that recognising the contribution made by those who left Ireland, post World War II, never to return home, while seeking the best ways of harnessing the Irish diaspora, is a fitting way to pay tribute to the Irish men and women who over the last 70 years left Ireland in search of opportunity and a better way of life.

“Tomorrow afternoon, I will be joining Friends of the Forgotten Irish in welcoming the Irish Elderly Emigrants Tour UK to St. Joseph’s Pastoral Centre in Glasthule as part of the Gathering 2013 celebrations. A wreath will be laid later in the day at the East Pier, Dun Laoghaire, Dublin, in memory of Irish people who left from Carlisle Pier for England, in search of a better life.

“Sadly, many of the ‘Forgotten Irish’ never again made it home but were instead subsumed into life in cities such as London and Liverpool. For many, it was not opportunity that awaited but hard times, with many being forced to live in less than desirable circumstances. With no means of support, coming home was not an option with the result, sadly, that many were forced to cut their ties with Ireland, at least on a physical level.

“In the morning, I will be attending the Global Diaspora Forum which is being held in the Fitzpatrick Castle Hotel in Killiney. The Irish diaspora is so diverse and stretches to every corner of the globe. The strength of Ireland’s international reputation is owed, in part, to the role our emigrants play in representing their homeland overseas.

“Harnessing the potential of our diaspora is key to keeping our Irish family connected and, as part of the Gathering, ensuring that everyone knows that the door is always open and that a welcome is what awaits visitors or those who are returning home when they get here. The Forum is being held on the same day as Washington event, something that was suggest by Hillary Clinton while in office. The Forum is expected to hear from as many as 50 speakers and I look forward to hearing suggestions on how best to secure the very special bonds we feel here in Ireland with the Irish men and women who have made their homes elsewhere.”