Irish people overestimate level of immigration into the country, new research from the ESRI has foundPeople in Ireland overestimate the level of immigration, new research from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) has found. “An informed debate about issues like immigration requires shared understanding of the facts,” said Shane Timmons, lead author of the report. “While most people do not hold negative attitudes toward immigration, those who do tend to strongly underestimate migrants’ economic contribution. The average person taking part in the survey estimated that 28pc of the population in Ireland was born abroad. “Overestimating the share of migrants seeking asylum and underestimating migration for work and education have the strongest association with negative attitudes,” the report stated.

Source: Irish Independent January 15, 2026 13:00 UTC