Ireland may be the nicest place to live in the world according to recent reports – but since May 1st a veritable deluge of people have arrived from Eastern Europe. Polish registered cars now seem to be the most common non-Irish car on the roads. The numbers coming to Ireland seem to mainly come from Poland – with Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia following behind.
And they come to work – and the Irish economy seems to be handling it all quite well. I have already started learning some Polish and Russian. It might come in handy.
Here is a photo of how much Ireland has changed since May 1st – and I think changing for the better.
Comments
4 responses to “The new Ireland”
Okay, the polish are a very nice collection of folk………….. Having worked with some years ago, I am aware of their ability to do anything and everything with finesse and humility………..Having said that, for sheer audacity and wit, the Irish are still the gold medal winners for me!!
I can’t get a flight, so I will swim there, maybe even Fedex myself directly!!!!
Polish people used to have a horrible time of it crossing to the UK. Last year I travelled from Poland to London by bus. At Dover, we all had to get off the bus. Out of 44 people, I was the only person who was able to walk straight through customs as an EU citizen. The rest of the passengers had to be interviewed by Home Office officials. The whole process took longer than our ferry crossing from Calais. One person had to go back to the bus to collect his bags and be sent back over the Channel. A Polish friend says that, on one occasion, 10 people on her bus were sent back at Dover.
This year I did the same journey, just after Poland acceded to the EU. Everybody on the bus was dreading what would happen at Dover. But … what a difference! We all stayed on the bus, held up our passports to the Home Office guy when he came on board, and he waved us through! “That’s the end of a good old Polish tradition!” quipped one of the passengers as we zoomed out of the ferryport. We arrived at London Victoria two hours early. I think the Polish bus company are going to have to reschedule their travel times …
Why do Polish, Lithunian,Lativan cars driven on Irish roads have no tax, no insurance and no nct. They are hardly here on holiday considering the distance they have driven.If they are here to work they must play by the rules set by the Irish government otherwise they should leave. No excuses.What if they crash and seriously injure a law abiding family, who pays the cost
Hi They have to register their cars with customs if here for over year.Ring customs if prob.