Issues with integration on the continent can be a lesson to us
We tend to see the positives of migration into Ireland but must be alert to any tension, writes Paul Moran
LAST Thursday, the minister with responsibility for defence, Paul Kehoe, announced a major recruitment drive to boost the Defence Forces by more than 800 personnel.
What was significant was that a special emphasis was placed upon the need to encourage more “new Irish” into the services.
This is not the first time that integration has been actively targeted — An Garda Siochana, among others, has launched several such initiatives. It demonstrates a growing acknowledgement of the “new Irish” in today’s society, and the increasing influence they will have.
So, how does the public feel about our increasingly cosmopolitan society? Kantar Millward Brown earlier this month measured attitudes and perceptions towards the new Irish for our Sunday Independent opinion poll.
The results, on balance, are generally positive. First off, there is a broad acknowledgement that a more diverse society leads to a better society. More than half (52pc) of respondents agree that having people from different races, ethnic groups and nationalities contribute to a better place for us all to live in, versus fewer than three in 10 (28pc) who disagree. Generally speaking, there are few differences across the generational divide.
From a socio-economic point of view, a distinct pattern emerges. The higher you are on the socio-economic ladder, the more likely you are to agree that inward migration has been a good thing. Among ABs (the professional classes, who are generally most affluent), more than three in five (61pc) believe that immigration has been a good thing.
This tapers off consistently as we look down the scale.
Among DEs — who are those in unskilled jobs or reliant on State assistance — fewer than half (46pc) of respondents are as enamoured to the contribution of our immigrants.
Regionally there is little difference in perceptions, with the exception of those living in Leinster (outside of Dublin) — just 38pc express a positive viewpoint.
Two in three people (66pc) overall express agreement that our new/non-Irish make an important contribution to the Irish economy, versus just 14pc who disagree. A similar trend emerges, with the richer more in agreement.
Residents of Dublin, the cockpit of the economy, are most likely to concur. That said, the economic benefits of our non-Irish workforce are recognised by the majority across all age groups, social classes and regions. From a political vista, just half (52pc) of Sinn Fein supporters are as complimentary.
In tandem with this, there is a strong belief that nonIrish people are more likely to take jobs that Irish people would refuse to do. More than seven in 10 believe this to be the case. Those living in Munster and Conn/Ulster are most strident in this belief.
Similar to recent high-profile cases of abuses in the rental market, this willingness of non-Irish people to take these jobs arguably leaves some of them open to exploitation.
Although these results certainly paint our perceptions of non-Irish people in a positive light, it is not to say that everything is rosy. There is a perception that non-Irish people are more likely to claim social welfare benefits than the indigenous population. More than half (53pc) believe this to be the case. Those tending to agree to this view are more likely to be DEs (59pc), living in rural areas (57pc), and, intriguingly, supporters of Fianna Fail (67pc).
Likewise, nearly half (49pc) of respondents believe that non-Irish people are taking jobs that may otherwise go to Irish people, while 55pc of 18- to 24-year-olds believe this to be the case. DEs (56pc) and the farming community (69pc) also share this belief.
Of course, this is arguably a moot point. While many may frame their perception in the context of “low-value”/ unskilled workers, the opposite could also be said. Many of the high-profile, hi-tech companies based in Ireland have benefited immensely from the pool of foreign talent — a resource that the local population may not otherwise have been able to supply.
So where does this leave us? The population generally sees the positives of inward migration in Ireland. However, that does not mean that we should be complacent. Casual racism in particular is still very much alive.
Yet we’ve generally adapted well to the transition from our previously homogenous socie- ty just over a generation ago. We thankfully have not seen within Irish politics a lurch to the right; we have no Farage, Le Pen, Wilders or Trump. Any attempts so far to do so have been emphatically rebuffed.
Of course, there is an argument that any perceived tensions may be in their embryonic stages — Ireland stepped up to the table of inward migration much more recently than others; European immigration was much more established, and therefore the seeds of tension have had more time to germinate.
Herein lies the advantage for Ireland — we can learn from the mistakes of others in terms of integration, ghettoisation and social cohesion. It is how genuinely proactive we are in doing so that will be key.