22,000 primary pupils have left Ireland since 2012

Some 22,000 children who had been attending primary school have emigrated in the past five years.

New figures published by the Department of Education show the annual average is 4,300, or 6% of all births each year.

The number of schoolchildren aged 12 or under who have emigrated since the economic crash, which began in 2008, is 38,300. The overwhelming majority have left with their parents and other family members, which gives an indication of emigration levels in the past decade.