'Brightest and best' Irish people have emigrated says politician

Opportunities in Canada and America have,I am sure, been a factor. The Irish are the largest single group in the American meld. I am sure they will continue to be so. Ireland's loss is Canada and America's gain. This has been so for more than 200 years.

At least we won't have to endure any 1916 claptrap.Since the foundation of the state, a small dynasty of politicans have grabbed and retained power for themselves and their cronies.Shame on the Irish electorate for voting in gobshites like De Valera, Lenihans,Haughey's, Fitzgerald's etc.80% of construction jobs lost in the past 2 years.JOINING THE EURO HAS BEEN A DISASTER.

I can agree with Costello - I was one of the exports in the 1980s. And who cared - when I tried to return I was told I would not be recognized until I lived in Ireland again for 3 years, no help at all. House prices were sky high as was cost of living. Yet everywhere I saw refugees and immigrants living what I felt was the high life, not in need of anything, had free housing (mews etc), clinics and hospitals full blah blah. I kept up to day with the daily news and it got to the stage where every hotel, bar, store etc., no longer had Irish employees. My friends were all cut to part-time instead of full-time because the immigrants were all full time. So that seems to be reverse discrimination - crime was at it's highest. I always thought ethnicity was a great thing for Ireland until 'some' took advantage of the benefits (or should I say abused them). Now we're heading back to third world status methinketh so it's time to look after the Irish citizens,at home or those abroad who wish to return. I paid my taxes there for 20 years. My daughter, also a citizen, was told she would have to pay international rates to attend college ($50K annually), yet loads were getting free educ or in state rates for Europeans. So while I am not racist I am very saddened by how my country has "developed". It is not the home of Irish anymore, whether that's good or bad no-one seems to care about it. So it goes. Amen to Costello.

As I wring my hands and thump my craw I exclaim "Sure, we all can't expect to live on this little Island" the late person to whom this quote is credited never had any fear of any of his Family 'Taking the Boat' as he was a Great Coat Holder and Brown Noser for the inimitable Charlie Haughey(Charlie of the 5,000 Euro French Shirts) and please don't forget "Pee Flynn" who had a Terrible hard time financing Three Homes, one in Mayo, One in Dublin and One in Brussels.

lehane: Do us a favor, stop screaming "racist" at anyone who doesn't think Ireland's open door immigration policies are smart. Grow up. And what an inane point about the "emigrants" (surely you mean immigrants) building up the property boom. Yeah, the boom that made us all rich. Ireland is doing really well after a decade of Mass Immigration... er... isn't it? --- What racist claptrap.

I like the part where they are going to make the people starve, which they have been doing since 1997 when the so called Celtic Tiger collapsed. Irish Politicians are the scum of the earth.

Don't be such a racist, WoundedKnee! The emigrants of the noughties into Ireland built the property boom - we would have gone bust years ago otherwise. Personally, I don't think the Irish Government can do anything to revive the economy at this point, it's just blowing in the wind thanks to previous economic policies.

It is ironic that a Labor TD would criticise the Government when it is the Labor movement that has created high wages in Ireland that has driven export jobs from Ireland. Just look at Dell computers, they moved 3000 jobs to Poland simply because of the high wages, they came to Ireland in the 1990 era because of Irelands well educated and competitive workforce, explain that!

I don't think this is good for Ireland or for the young Irish people who have lost their jobs. The Irish government should do all it can to create jobs and don't trust that corporations will be enough to revive their struggling economy, we've seen what the corporations, especially the banks, are all about. Trust your own people, and don't be fooled again!

But this guy Costello is one of the loudest cheerleaders for unrestricted immigration into Ireland! Does he want to replace the Irish people with a new stock, brought in from abroad? In a couple of decades the Irish will be a minority in their own country. Crazy Irish politicians...