Immigration to Ireland has reached a 17-year high, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office. Almost 150 thousand people arriving in the country in the 12 months to April. The figures show that of these, 30,000 were returning Irish citizens, 27,000 were other EU citizens and 5,400 were UK citizens. The remaining 86,800 immigrants were citizens of other countries.
More than 69,000 people emigrated from Ireland in the 12 months to April, the highest emigration figure since 2015. The figures also show 10,600 people left Ireland to live in Australia while around 15,200 people emigrated to the UK. Economist David W Higgins says the increase in the population will put more pressure on the Government to build houses.
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