Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is interesting to note two other statistics.Last year, we saw 80,000 Irish emigrants return to Ireland and we have net inward migration in this State. This fairy tale that some people want to tell, that people are fleeing Ireland and it is a failed state, is complete nonsense. People want to come here and they want to come home and they are welcome. We all recognise and acknowledge the societal challenges in bringing people back in and that there are difficulties in certain policies.

When it comes to work permits, two areas are extremely important going forward. The Department has recently appointed IT system specialists to undertake the design and implementation of a new employment permits system, which will benefit many. Also, in December the Government agreed to establish an interdepartmental working group to develop an implementation plan for a single application procedure for employment permits and, crucially, the immigration permissions that will accompany them. This is a good news story that is worth talking about. I hope to work more closely on it with Senator McGahon and other Senators going forward.