Leaving Ireland can be costly — for some

AT Cork airport recently we said goodbye to our eldest daughter who was leaving Ireland by choice — not through forced emigration or, as in Mary Coughlan’s world, for the “fun of it”.

She has secured employment in Slovakia. Unlike my parents who left Ireland in the 1950s with a one-way ticket and, I presume, the message being “oh, and by the way, don’t come back”. Well, they didn’t until the 1970s, when Ireland was equally unwelcome.

My daughter was flying Ryanair and the ticket cost €70 one way. The baggage was 25 kilos so we were prepared to be hit, but what we didn’t expect was that Ryanair would demand the same overcharge in London. Total cost of flight, €470. !!