Irish Examiner view: Ireland must deliver promise of a better, sustainable, and just future

Much to welcome in population growth figures released by Central Statistics Office

According to figures released by the Central Statistics Office, the Republic of Ireland's population has exceeded 5 million for the first time since 1851. The number of non-Irish people nationals living in Ireland now accounts for just under 13% of the total, and that is a vote of confidence in our stability and our response to them. Photo: Leah Farrell/RollingNews.ie

There is much to welcome in the news that Ireland’s population is increasing, and that Irish people abroad ex-pats are voting with their feet by returning home and bringing their skills, expertise, commitment, and sense of humour with them.

It’s the first time since 2007, just as the world was entering that wretched financial meltdown which has blighted us for more than a decade, that the number of Irish people nationals returning to the country has increased.