Aontú has launched its ‘Operation Shamrock’ plan – a set of initiatives which it says will facilitate essential workers in coming home to Ireland, and address systemic barriers to the progress of those workers who have left the country and not returned.
The plan involves a “suite of policy recommendations” that the party believes will enable essential workers to come home, covering “housing, a competitive return grant, systemic changes in qualification recognition, upskilling and legislative proposals to ensure safe staffing for healthcare staff.”
Speaking at the launch at the Dáil today, Aontú Leader Peadar Tóibín TD said: “Operation Shamrock is an initiative by Aontú to put in place effective incentives and support for Irish emigrants in key sectors to come home. Many respondents to surveys relating to leaving home for a life abroad have referred to working conditions and rates of pay – issues within the purview of this government.”
“Deputy Tóibín said that 34,700 Irish citizens had emigrated in the 12 months to April 2024, which he said was the highest number since the year to April 2015. This signifies an ongoing trend of Irish people leaving home for better prospects across the globe.”
He said that the Irish health service has “lost a generation of nurses” – and that “almost 13,000 nursing or midwifery staff have left in the last five years” with “many citing their working conditions, especially nurses who are burnt out, working in unsafe situations and looking after too many patients”.
“In seeking to facilitate returning Irish workers, the HSE has a scheme in place to entice them home and is payable towards vouched accommodation and flight expenses up to a combined total amount of €4,160 for candidates relocating from the EU / Britain and €4,710 for candidates relocating from non-EU countries.,” he said.
“This is miserly in comparison to what is being offered by some Australian companies and the HSE do not even know how many doctors or nurses came home and availed of this scheme,” he said.
“In relation to construction workers, essential if we are to build anywhere near enough homes for the future, the government do not know how many construction workers have left Ireland, and does not keep records as to how many of these have returned,” he added.
“There are no direct financial incentives for construction workers to return home. The only effort the government have made to bring construction workers home has been a targeted international social media campaign in October 2024 focused in Australia and Canada, which cost €170k in total. Yet, Ministers did not carry out any evaluation as to whether it actually made any difference,” he said.
“Aontú recognise that there are practical barriers in place that stop those who want to come home in the form of recognition of qualifications, housing and incentives. Our policy document seeks to address these and give Irish essential workers a reason to come home and contribute once more to the future of their country,” the Aontú leader said today.
“We have created a suite of policy recommendations that we believe will enable those essential workers who want to come home, to do so. They cover housing, a competitive return grant, systemic changes in qualification recognition, upskilling and legislative proposals to ensure safe staffing for healthcare staff,” he said.
“We believe these initiatives can start to reverse the massive exodus of key Irish workers – though we are under no illusions that this government are the major impediment to meaningful change that can give people the confidence to come home,” the Aontú leader said.