A breed apart: highest fertility rate in EU

IRELAND had the highest fertility rate and the second-highest proportional increase in population in the EU in the past decade.

The CSO report also shows that the number of lone parent families has soared by 80% in the past decade.

The nation’s population now stands at its highest level since pre-Famine days. The population increased by 13.9% to over 4.1 million over the period 1996-2005.