Local TD Slams Government Hypocrisy In Trying To Induce Irish To Return Home

Many young people continue to leave Ireland because they cannot afford to live here amid the cost of living crisis according local Sinn Féin TD Fionntáin O Súilleabhain

Sinn Féin TD for the Wicklow–Wexford constituency, Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin, has criticised the government for spending almost half a million euro on an advertising campaign aimed at encouraging Irish emigrants to return home, while simultaneously maintaining policies that make returning difficult.

Ó Súilleabháin highlighted that many young people continue to leave Ireland because they cannot afford to live here, purchase a home, or cover weekly bills, and he described the cost of living as increasingly burdensome.

At the same time, Irish citizens wishing to return face substantial bureaucratic hurdles and a lack of available housing. He argued that these issues require urgent attention, rather than PR campaigns.

He further emphasized that the government has neglected to address critical issues such as the housing and cost-of-living crises, immigration management, and creating opportunities for young people to remain in Ireland.

According to Ó Súilleabháin, the recent advertising campaign exemplifies how out of touch the government is with these challenges. Ó Súilleabháin referred to a recent cross-party briefing on returning Irish citizens, hosted by Sinn Féin TD Johnny Guirke, which featured Ciarán Staunton of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform and Karen McHugh of Safe Home Ireland.

The briefing, attended by several Sinn Féin TDs, addressed a range of issues affecting returning emigrants, including recognition of foreign qualifications and experience (such as for teachers and nurses), voting rights for Irish citizens abroad, US–Irish driver’s license exchange, planning and housing difficulties, non-Irish spousal/de facto visas, and education and third-level fees for children of Irish-born citizens.

The briefing highlighted the numerous obstacles that returning emigrants encounter when trying to reintegrate into Irish society.

Ó Súilleabháin has called for the establishment of a Cross-Party Oireachtas Committee on Returning Irish Citizens to tackle these challenges and remove barriers preventing citizens from returning.

He stressed that the government must prioritize addressing these practical issues over expensive advertising campaigns.