More males in their 20s are leaving Ireland than females

In the five years prior to 2011, 10 per cent of men in their 20s left Ireland, while five per cent of women in the same age group emigrated.

This figure means that 40,000 people in their 20s left Ireland in just five years. The analysis is based on recent data from last year’s census. The difference between males and females leaving, of which there has been no previous evidence, was thought to be down to more redundancies in male-dominated sectors like constructions since the beginning of the recession.

While the figures reveal high net emigration among those in their 20s in the 2006-2011 period, overseas nationals in the same age bracket arrived on the Emerald Isle in even larger numbers during the period, with the country revealing a net migration figure of 50,000.

A separate document on the housing property market published yesterday and based on the latest census data found big differences between the amount of unoccupied homes in rural and urban areas, with more houses in the countryside standing empty. On this basis, there could be a considerable increase in demand to purchase houses in urban areas, a factor that could see prices rise.

Analysts are of the opinion that rents will go up in the cities on the assumption of high net migration over the period to 2015.