Today, the ESRI publishes a report titled Attitudes towards immigration and refugees in Ireland: Understanding recent trends and drivers.

Over the last decade, Irish attitudes towards immigration have generally become more positive, with beliefs in its benefits for the economy and cultural enrichment reaching historic highs in 2022, having improved significantly from dips during the recession. 

In November 2023, Ireland had some of the most positive attitudes towards immigration of all EU27 countries – ranked fourth most supportive among EU27 countries and the UK.

However, recent years have also seen declines in some indicators, including positivity towards both EU and non-EU immigration and perceptions of immigrants' contribution to Ireland.

Attitudes vary towards different immigrant groups, with higher support for EU and Ukrainian immigrants compared to those from outside the EU or asylum seekers, influenced by factors such as education, perceived financial strain and concern around access to housing and services. 

A survey experiment showed that those who identify as politically left wing are more positive across some indicators, which may indicate the emergence of a left-right split in attitudes to immigrants in Ireland.

Publication 

Download Attitudes towards immigration and refugees in Ireland: Understanding recent trends and drivers by James Laurence, Frances McGinnity and Keire Murphy.

Press Release 

Read the accompanying press release, which highlights key points from the publication.

For further information, please contact:

Keire Murphy (EMN Policy Officer, ESRI)
Email: [email protected]

This report has been accepted for publication by the Institute, which does not itself take institutional policy positions. The report has been peer-reviewed prior to publication. The authors are solely responsible for the content and the views expressed.