ABSTRACT
Ireland’s rapid economic turnaround since the late 1980s has been widely regarded as an international success story, characterised by a startling transition from economic stagnation and net population decline to an unprecedented period of growth. This period of economic growth ended as Ireland entered recsssion in 2008. With an annual average rate of economic growth of 20 per cent between the years 1995 and 2000, the Irish economy grew at a rate which was three times greater than the European average (Lynas 2004; Matthews and Alden 2006). Frequently referred to as the Celtic Tiger, this rapid economic growth was fuelled by substantial foreign investment and high-quality jobs in the information technology and pharmaceutical sectors, bringing with it a reversal of populations trends, as some Irish migrants returned home, out-migration reduced and immigrants from elsewhere were attracted in (Matthews and Alden 2006). There is considerable debate on the key ingredients of this success, but favourable rates of corporation tax, historical connections to the United States, good educational levels, the English language, plus eligibility for substantial EU investment as an Objective 1 region during the 1990s all appear in most accounts.
