Initiative for emigrants: Win-win proposals

AS our correspondent Cathy Tobin reminds us today the wrench of emigration, the separation from a loved family never eases for some Irish people.

It can be, though not always, a life-long ache for those living abroad and for those left at home too.

This rings true despite the fact that emigration has been a huge drain on this country for centuries and is a deeply embedded part of our culture.

It continues to this very day, nearly a quarter of a million people left these shores since 2008 and in too many ways it is almost as if they never existed.

They are gone and depend on Skype and the occasional visit to renew the links that define and sustain so many of us.

Recognising the impact this can have on so many people, the Government is considering a tax initiative to give those forced to emigrate an opportunity to return to Ireland.

Diaspora Minister Jimmy Deenihan also disclosed that the Government is considering a scheme that would help third-generation Irish students come on heritage, study visits.

Based on Israel’s Taglit-Birthright scheme, this proposal seems well worth consideration and funding and it might become the foundation stone for a new and deeper relationship with the millions around the world claiming Irish lineage.

These seem entirely welcome proposals and it is hard to think that they would have anything other than a positive impact for emigrants and this society.