Anyone who has left Ireland - could you tell me why?

[PhaseFour]

And also, if you have ever regretted it, and what you miss most about your homeland? I constantly fantasise about moving there when the DCs have all left home. I'd be interested to hear people's experiences of why they left - it might temporarily help me to stop fantasising about moving there!

Actually, never mind.

I have irish friends in england and they all left for economic reasons, lack of jobs, everything too expensive. I've got family over there and the celtic tiger years were good but its been a struggle since the crash. However, i feel that way about england!

@WhateverYouSayDearsmaybe people can make up their own minds about what they think about their own country. Perhaps they genuinely believe what they say and feel about their own country, and their reasons are posted on here because that's how they feel, as opposed to posting them because they're trying to convince themselves of something, or to to justify their actions.

@Malvalathat's nice to read. Moving away for study and / or work, but then heading back home to settle down seems to be a theme on here.

I’ve left twice! I’m from NI and couldn’t wait to escape from the Troubles and the parochialness, so I left for London after uni. That was in the early 90s. I met and married my husband in London, and when we had a baby decided it would be nice to go back to Ireland to be near family, so we moved to Cork in 2002. We enjoyed it until the recession started to bite hard. Also the weather was shocking, we got so sick of grey skies. We also found it difficult to make close friends, we were always blow ins despite my husbands family being local. So we moved to Oz and found our home. We won’t be back apart from trips to see family, that is all we miss (apart from M & S😁).

It would be easy for you to move to NI as pensions , etc would just transfer also NHS entitlement. I think it is hard to move to any country as you get older.
The weather is the major issue for me but there are issues everywhere as climate change is making itself felt.

I am Irish, lived abroad for a long time and moved back here to raise my family, because it is a lovely country to raise children in and also I wanted to be near my own family and and have an education system that I was familiar with.
Dublin is not awful in every way whoever said that upthread! Dublin has its problems like every city but is also great.
This weekend the weather is amazing and I live close to the sea so it is like being somewhere on holiday. In the middle of winter with the rain cold damp and dark it’s another story. Irish people are very friendly and warm but some non Irish people who live here say that we are hard to really get close to. A lot is left unsaid, while we also talk a lot!
To be very honest also how you get on here will depend on what earning potential/ money you have. If you are able to get a well paid job and live somewhere nice you will probably love it. If you are on a lower income you will struggle more. Although of course that also depends on where in Ireland you want to live. I’d work out first where in Ireland you want to live and visit there a few times at different times of the year, look at house prices, jobs and see if it is realistic for you. Good luck!

I’ve been in the west of Ireland for 2 years, moved from Scotland. I did it for my young family. The quality of life here and the opportunities are much better for them. Wonderful schooling, amazing community support for GAA and everyone gets involved, and of course the open links to Europe and the doors that will open for them later. But I am already wondering about where I will go when they get older and leave home. It’s not the place to retire to I don’t think. Housing is difficult to find, many properties on the market need some serious investment to make them comfortable and affordable to run. Healthcare is cripplingly expensive and I really miss the NHS. Food is dear, yes, but much better quality than the UK. There is an over reliance on expensive and polluting methods of home heating. The public transport network is very poor in our area, and we are not rural. So moving here on a UK pension might be really tricky, and not an easy lifestyle for the elderly who don’t have a family support network around them. And yes, the attitude to the English is definitely a thing. I have even been told that I must find it easy enough to blend in here because “Scottish and Irish people have plenty in common, not like the English and their terrible sense of humour.”

Everything goes in the range to be burned - I actually think it’s a better way than the landfill we have here. Topped up with peat the smell is heavenly.

I left- twice!

First time in the early nineties straight out of college to a tech job in the UK and was there for around ten years.
Came back (due to a tech job) in 2004 with a husband and had kids in Ireland. We bought at the absolute peak of the housing bubble, and even with both working struggled to save and feel comfortable.

Had the opportunity to move to Switzerland for a sevondment whilst the kids were still small. 15 years later , we’re still in CH and the kids pass as locals here.

I love visiting Ireland but would not live there again, unless the only other alternative was to go back to the UK (which outside London has, IMO, become a shithole since Brexit)

Wages are higher though so it's not really like for like.

Housing is insane. Easier to find outside the cities but still not great. You pay for GP but can get an appointment very easily, at least in my area. Weather is variable. Much drier on the east coast, particularly south east, than the west coast.

@SoonenoughI am definitely open to the idea of moving to NI. Thank you.

Ireland is very easy to have a romantic view of because being on holiday there is a very different story to the reality of living there.

I moved away almost 30 years ago as I felt stifled - this was when the church still had the country in a powerful grip.

From the late 90s onwards though, Ireland went through a huge change and feels like a very different place now. Much more progressive, forward looking, highly educated (the education system is leaps and bounds ahead of the U.K. system), good infrastructure in the main and inclusive - despite the troglodytes getting airtime spouting whatever McGregor is ranting about.

Many parts of the U.K. feel very narrow minded and poverty stricken in comparison now and the contrast in basic education levels in the wider population is stark.

But Ireland has been badly impacted since the Celtic tiger bust. Housing is in short supply, expensive and sometimes very below standard. If you live rurally you will need a car.

Food, though better quality and much more varied in choice compared to the U.K. since Brexit, is horribly expensive.
Health care is expensive and the level of care in regional hospitals can be sub par, even when paying.

I live between Ireland and the U.K. and have not made the full move because I have chronic health issues which I could not financially afford to have treated to the same level there as I can on the NHS.

Housing and healthcare are huge considerations and in your shoes I would look to a move to NI to retain your nhs access and cheaper housing stock, and take full advantage of the open border to explore the rest of the island.

'Food, though better quality and much more varied in choice compared to the U.K. since Brexit, is horribly expensive.'

A few people have made the same point about food being 'better' in Ireland than the UK - could you say more about what you mean?

I live between the UK and Ireland because I have a better earning potential in the UK. I've lived in various countries throughout my 20's and Ireland has always been home. I am currently thinking of moving home full-time for the following reasons;

The UK has become a cesspit since Brexit. It's regressed to a parochial mindset. It's visibly poorer unless you live in a wealthy area.

Healthcare, although more expensive in Ireland is more accessible and of a higher quality (I work in healthcare). I access healthcare now at home as I can easily see my GP and get referred quickly and easily I'd needed. I do have health insurance at home.

Closer family / community links. I love the GAA community, it's all embracing and does wonders for teaching kids discipline, community and pride in one's locality.

As other have said education is far superior to the UK and more egalitarian. This is a major deciding factor for me as I have a LO and like all parents, I want to give her the best opportunities in life. University fees at the moment are €3000 and again, university education is more egalitarian than the UK.

Although expensive, the quality and choice of food is far superior. Fresh produce is of poorer quality in the UK, it generally lacks flavour. I'm always amazed at how empty the shelves are in the UK compared to home, especially since Brexit and Covid.

I'm aware of the housing crisis and the recent rise in racism. However, I think I'd have a better overall quality of life at home.
The weather is generally worse than here, but Summers can be pleasant and depending where you live, you're never too far from the sea.

Off topic, though a nice example of Irish humour, but there is a Derry based band called the Wood Burning Savages. Further off topic there is also a Belfast Group who have named themselves The Fun Protestants.

DD has been in Belfast almost two years and loves it. Her Irish ancestors left during the potato famine though bequeathing her pale skin and a preference for cool damp weather. Socially it was a bit tricky at first as peers had often known each other since nursery and did a lot of socialising within their families, though that might also be true of other places in the UK. But in other ways it was easier being a blown-in and she was quickly invited to play both rugby and GAA, with the eventual GAA decision based on training times and seemingly no problems with her being English.

Compared to London housing is cheap, food may be a tad more expensive but the quality is much better. There is lots happening in Belfast, it is a city that is having its moment, and DD goes to Dublin for an occasional concert or sports match. The countryside is both glorious and accessible.

Most of all it suits her. People are more straightforward and open compared with southern England. Belfast, or at last south/southeast Belfast, feels very safe. Obviously Belfast has its tensions, but as an outsider she can observe but keep a distance.

@Lottapianos the quality of fresh food is much better. Fresher, tastier and longer lasting I find. Much more is produced locally than imported.

The variety of choice is better - it’s been slowing going that way since Brexit but after Covid the contrast has been starker.

Even in international chains like Aldi the difference in quality and choice is huge.

Over Covid I was away for about 18 months and I remember walking into the supermarket in my small rural irish town and being blown away by just how full the shelves were and how much there was to choose from compared to my local London supermarkets.
If feels like in the U.K. we have had so much taken from us by incremental degrees that the change was not noticeable til then.

Saying that, even the smallest London supermarket will have a much more extensive South Asia or Eastern Europe section.

@Airmed I wish I had the same experience with health care, as I’d be that much closer to making the full time move. Maybe it’s an issue where I am, but I have found the level of care much poorer than in the U.K. both from a GP pov and hospitals. I have rare chronic issues so I expected things to be more complex but seeing how my mother has been treated at 2 different hospitals at 2 different counties, I don’t think it’s just rare issues they struggle with.

It wasn't a potato famine. Referring to it as such is generally seen as inappropriate.

While there was a blight on the potato crop, there was more than enough food in the country to feed everyone.

I was born and grew up in Ireland - left due to spouse getting a job in UK about twenty years ago. I miss home enormously, although my parents and siblings have moved to another country now. Can't quite believe I'll never live there again.

At first I didn't mind living abroad but the homesickness has gotten worst over the years. I'm really envious of people who wanted to move back and who did. Due to work and children's education, I can't go back now.

Sorry. I grew up in a Catholic family in England and this is what they called it, even though family lore has it that one ancestor fled Mayo after being caught poaching and hitting the gamekeeper over the head.

what term is used now for that era of mass emmigration?

It's funny different experiences. My dh is English from a rural part of England, family are farmers. We lived in London for years and moved to Dublin after we were married. He loves it and feels way more at home here then he ever did in London where he struggled to fit with their "class" system. His line of work meant he was mixing a lot with oxbridge types and they were pretty snobby towards us. he has got massively involved in our local community and GAA. I think it is like anywhere you will fit in well if you make the effort.

The official name is The Great Famine but it would generally be referred to as the famine. Approximately 1 million people died and another 1 million emigrated between 1845 and 1952. This was from a starting population of 8.5 million.

Bear in mind, there was a more than enough food being grown in Ireland to feed the population.

I loved my years in Ireland, I love England too. I feel so at home in Ireland, love the Irish mind set and humour is second to none. You can’t beat England for friendliness and warmth, imo, you couldn’t find nicer people anywhere. Ireland cost of living is through the roof now though and of course England is suffering a good deal from poor governance too.

I’m Irish, grew up in NI. Left for London to complete a masters then doctorate. Met English dh and had dc. In total lived there for 16 years. We moved back to NI as a family a few years ago and do not regret it for one second. I do miss the weather in London, though my dh prefers it here as he hates the heat.

cost of living a lot less here. We managed to buy a house outright and are mortgage free. Dc at grammar school getting an excellent education. Everything just feels like less of a rat race. When we go back to London/ south east to visit the in laws everything is just so busy- roads, restaurants, beaches, shops, parks etc.
Dh and I earn the same salaries so lots more disposable income. No water charges and free prescriptions.

we live near the coast but very easy access to the city.