Towns gain, country loses in Census

THE move from country areas to towns and cities continues, according to the latest Census figures.
The 2016 Census highlights a familiar pattern with clear signs that rural Ireland continues to suffer alarming population decline while people migrate to cities and larger towns where services and employment are more readily available.
The findings underline falling employment in traditional sectors such as agriculture and the impact of Government policies such as the cutting back of supports to more isolated and rural communities such as post offices, Garda stations and smaller schools.
They have led to the Western Development Commission (WDC) to call for a new national spatial policy in an effort to tackle the growing development disparity between Leinster and Connacht.

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