Ireland Before and After Accession to the European Union

1993

Rot), O'Donnel] is a Senior Research Officer with The Economic and Social Research Institute. The paper has been accepted for publication by the Institute which is not responsible for either the content o]" the views t~xl)rcsscd [hcr~iH.

Organizational Dynamics, 2005

According to the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2004, which European country has the highest gross domestic product (GDP) per employee, higher even than the U.S.? According to the most recent Economist Intelligence Unit index, which country offers executives and employees the best quality of life? The title of this article gives away the identity: Ireland. Otherwise, we suspect many people would have difficulty responding correctly-and would be surprised to learn the answer. Ireland is no longer the economic backwater, the poor cousin, the recipient of continuing EU largesse, the staid, quaint country with lush green fields and lively music that lacks in economic vitality. Rather, it is a country with a vibrant economy, a young, well-educated workforce, home to subsidiaries of many of the largest multinational enterprises (MNEs), claiming for itself the role of mediator between the U.S. and EU, ''half way between Boston and Berlin.'' Ireland caught world attention in the late 1990s, as a major growth spurt by the ''Celtic Tiger,'' averaging 9.2% per year, lifted its economy from levels far below most of its EU neighbors to parity. However, well before this period, it had caught the attention of

2010

When Professor Joe Lee wrote his magisterial history of twentieth century Ireland in the late 1980s one of the most important issues he addressed was the apparent economic failure of the Republic of Ireland. The main reasons advanced for this failure included slow and erratic patterns of economic growth, low productivity in key economic sectors, high and persistent levels of unemployment, exceptionally high emigration rates and a preponderance of enduring social problems. That this remained the case after more than a decade of EU membership seemed to call into question the wisdom of the Irish decision in 1973 to join the then European Community (EEC). Two decades later Ireland’s membership of the EU was thrown into serious question by the Irish electorate’s rejection in June 2008 of the Lisbon Treaty. This was the third such referendum on Europe held in Ireland since the millennium and the second referendum in three to result in a rejection of an EU Treaty following the failed Nice ...

Ireland joined the European Communities – as they then were – in 1973, alongside the United Kingdom and Denmark. In many ways that membership was defined by the bilateral British-Irish relationship. Ireland was, to all an intents and purposes, an underdeveloped appendage of the British economy and membership alongside the UK was deemed by most of the Irish political and economic establishment as virtually axiomatic. Irish policy makers, however, took full advantage of the opportunities offered by membership; in particular the Common Agricultural Policy, the direct transfers that ultimately derived from cohesion, regional and structural funding and the opportunity of presenting the country as a successful location for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) with access to the European market. Irish decision makers also developed a policy style within the EU which has been described as ‘consensual, collegial and pragmatic’ (Laffan 2000:13) while at the same time positioning themselves rhetorically close to the heart of European construction. This had the added value of creating an Irish antithesis to Britain's ongoing European discontents. There are perhaps four key themes which have occupied scholarship with respect to Ireland and its membership of the European Union. The first is the question of a small state and its sovereignty. It is a point of ongoing interest to understand and to explain why a small state – which secured its formal independence only in 1921 and which continues to grapple with issues of sovereignty and nationality – should be so willing to enter into a complex shared sovereignty arrangement with other European states, including its former coloniser? A second question of evident scholarly interest has been the economic development of the state within the EU. What was the impact of EU membership on a fragile, largely agricultural, peripheral European economy? How did European engagement contribute to Ireland's stunning economic successes in the 1990s, and what was its role in Ireland's economic crisis of 2008-2013 and subsequent (partial) recovery? A third series of questions relate to the EU and democracy. To what extent has Ireland's engagement with European integration strengthened or weakened its own democracy and how engaged are citizens with the European project? Finally there's the issue of Irish foreign policy. How and why has Ireland's tradition of military neutrality, which was an outlier within the EU throughout the Cold War, continued to impinge on both domestic debates on Europe and how has it shaped Ireland's contribution to EU foreign, security and defence policy?

The political context as Ireland addressed the issue of joining the Common Market in 1972 reflected domestic, Irish-English, and international political dimensions in significant ways. This presentation to a meting of Irish politicians and historians in Leinster House on 20 January 2012, explores thee events.

No country in Europe has been as affected by emigration over the past two centuries as Ireland. Beginning with the exodus of 1.25 million people during the Great Irish Famine, large-scale emigration has become a fact of life. Two surges of 20th-century emigration—first in the 1950s, when the country lost nearly 15 percent of its population, and then again in the 1980s—seemed to be reversed by a period of unprecedented economic growth from the early 1990s to 2007, as the country welcomed a large number of immigrants. However, in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the number of people leaving Ireland more than tripled between 2008 and 2012—placing emigration in the public and political spotlight once again. Today’s flows differ significantly from those of the past in that a significant percentage of those leaving are immigrants returning home or migrating elsewhere. In previous decades, the vast majority of emigrants were Irish citizens. Another point of contrast is that, today, most Irish emigrants are well educated. While this in part reflects the improved educational attainment of the country as a whole, new data indicate that university graduates are overrepresented among those leaving—62 percent of recent emigrants of the 25-34 age cohort, versus 47 percent of the same cohort of the population, lending some credence to worries about “brain drain.” Ireland’s unprecedented financial downturn in the wake of the global recession—real gross national product (GNP) declined by more than 10 percent, and unemployment and underemployment combined to reach 23 percent—provided a significant impetus for people to leave. This was especially true for workers in sectors such as construction, which was decimated by the recession. Underemployment and lack of job satisfaction also spurred many people to leave. Nearly 50 percent of recent emigrants were in fact employed in full-time jobs before leaving (and another 13 percent employed part time), but some reported being unsatisfied with their long-term career prospects (or those of their spouse) or were employed on temporary contracts and lacked certainty about the future. Some simply found better opportunities abroad; this was especially true for information technology (IT) and health professionals with skills in demand in other countries. While the United Kingdom is still the single most popular destination for Irish emigrants, the majority of those leaving are going to non-European destinations (namely Australia, the United States, Canada, and New Zealand—alongside emerging destinations in the Gulf States ). However, since most of those traveling to destinations outside Europe are on temporary permits, it remains to be seen whether this trend is sustainable. The burning political question is: how can the state ensure that many of these emigrants will return to Ireland? The booming economic growth of the years 1995 to 2007—when Ireland was referred to as the “Celtic Tiger”—enticed many emigrants from the 1980s to return. Economic growth, it is clear, is a key factor in attracting emigrants home. But it is unlikely that Ireland will go through another comparable cycle of growth in the near future, considering the long-lasting effects that recessions can have on domestic economies as hard-hit as Ireland’s, not to mention the consequences of persisting bank debt. A more attainable goal is a stable economy characterized by low unemployment and sustained growth. Of course, this will not guarantee that all emigrants will return; more attractive options may exist elsewhere, and some emigrants may have put down roots in their adopted homes. But perhaps Ireland can still benefit from the expertise of its citizens abroad. A global diaspora is both a potential resource and an important obligation. The relationship is two sided. If Ireland is to utilize the skills of Irish abroad, it needs to provide something in return. One way is to allow the Irish abroad to have a voice in domestic political and social debates through certain voting entitlements, which would nurture their connection with (and voice in) their country of origin. But in order to benefit from its citizens abroad, the Irish government must first develop a more accurate understanding of who these people are and what motivates them. Establishing a census of Irish emigrants overseas—capturing the numbers, destinations, and skills of those abroad—could be a first step to building more durable links between Ireland and its overseas citizens.

Renewal, 27:2, 2019

As Ireland set about applying to join the EEC in the 1950s the anti-British discourse on which Irish nationalism relied began to look rather specious, set against the evidence of our overwhelming economic dependence on the UK: this was an asymmetrical relationship like no other in Europe. The attainment of Irish membership of the European Communities constituted perhaps the most critical development in the life of the independent state and it helped to refashion Ireland in myriad ways across a spectrum of economic, political and social issues. President de Gaulle's veto over UK accession to the EEC effectively also ruled out Irish membership in the 1960s. But accession was finally achieved in 1973 and this essay charts the tortuous journey towards that pivotal moment and the challenges and frustrations experienced by Irish policy-makers in negotiating with the EEC 'Six'.

2013

Chapter 1. Introduction 'Most countries send out oil or iron, steel or gold, or some other crop, but Ireland has had only one export and that is its people.' John F. Kennedy on his presidential visit to Ireland, June 1963 No country in Europe has been as affected by emigration over the last two centuries as Ireland. Approximately ten million people have emigrated from the island of Ireland since 1800. 1 Considering the island's population today stands at 6.4 million people, the amount of people who have left in the last 200 years is extraordinary. As a result, emigration has had an enormous impact on Irish society. Every generation of Irish people in the last two centuries has had some experience of migration, whether it be their own migration abroad or that of family members and friends.

This essay contains a brief summary of Irelands Active Involvement within the Europ Union. Encompassing the years since inauguration up until the 2009 debt crisis (1973-2009).The article deals with how Irelands Involvement within the E.U has benefited the country specifically in the areas of Economy and Society.