The flight of the Irish - curse we must bring to an end

IN times of crisis — political, economic, religious or simply hunger — the Irish have always emigrated. No matter how grim things got flight was always an option, albeit one of last resort.

Emigration is the eternal curse of the Irish. Generation after generation families are torn apart and far too often the very people who might break the perpetual cycle of social and political dysfunction that strangles this country are also the ones with the determination and capacity to emigrate.

They must try to build new lives abroad while their families, especially their parents, are denied the pleasures they hold dearest — watching children become parents and loving contact with their grandchildren. To recognise the loneliness caused by breaking this simple cycle is not sentimentality, just a recognition of life’s ebb and flow, the process that defines humanity.

The Central Statistics Office have confirmed what we have known for some time — the floodgates are open again and tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee the land of their birth because it cannot support even their most modest expectations.

Emigration has reached levels not seen since the belt-tightening 1980s. Once again our failure to manage our affairs in an honest way has sent a tsunami of anger and sadness sweeping across the country.

Emigration in the 12 months to April 2010 was broadly constant at 65,300 while the number of immigrants into Ireland fell sharply, from 57,300 to 30,800.

So far so good but the figures detailing emigration between April 2009 and April 2010 are chastening. During that 12 months there was an increase in net outward migration from 7,800 to 34,500. This increase represents the highest level since 1989.

A second and equally stark set of figures released yesterday dealt with unemployment which, ironically, would have been even more depressing if emigration had not reached something just short of stampede levels.

During the last year 80,000 jobs were lost, though 1.85 million people still have jobs. Two men for every woman are without work as unemployment soared to 293,600.

The Quarterly National Household Survey showed the fall in the employment rate has slowed, with a 4.1% annual decrease in numbers working in April compared with a 8.2% drop up to April 2009.

Live Register figures showed 466,923 people, including part-time workers, signed on for benefits in August.

Confirming the abnormality of our circumstances the long-term unemployment rate has doubled to 5.9%.

We all know, no matter what spin doctors might have us believe, that these figures represent persistent cultural, economic, political and moral failure.

We can blame politicians or banks, we can even blame the Lehman Brothers, Uncle Tom Cobley and all if we like, but we are in this awful situation because we keep doing what we have always done. Unless we change our fundamental expectations of ourselves, our politicians and our society’s obligation to all its members mass emigration and unemployment will, sadly, continue to be recurring Irish tragedy.