Government spends half a million euro on campaign to attract workers back to Ireland

Ottoline Spearman

The government has spent almost €500,000 on a campaign to encourage construction workers who have moved abroad to countries such as Canada and Australia to return.

The campaign has used massive billboards with slogans such as “You’ve built Sydney, now come and build back home” to try to recruit some of the 70,000 construction workers needed here by 2030.

But workers say that the cost of living and lack of housing are major barriers to attracting workers back to Ireland.

Speaking on Newstalk, plumber Martin said he doesn’t see the campaign being a success: "If 10,000 people came back, where are they going to live?

"The cost of living here has gone through the roof. I know people in Australia, they have a good life, good weather. They're still leaving Ireland.

"Ireland is now a very expensive country to live in. So people that have left will not come back.

"I know people who came here from Australia two years ago. They bought a house out there where I'm living and they're selling up again. They're going back to Australia. They said it's way too expensive, they can't afford it."