A quote from Kevin Myers in The Irish Independent, 5 September 2007

No country has ever accepted, never mind assimilated, the volumes of foreigners now present in this state. We have some 400,000 legal immigrants; but everyone knows that the army of illegals, especially Africans and Chinese, is vast, and probably tops 200,000. In all, Ireland has received at least 600,000 immigrants, most of them within the past five years. It could be many more. No one has the least idea. In the US, such immigration would translate into an inward population movement of 45 million. In the UK, the figure would be nine million. Needless to say, neither state would be so idiotic or feckless as allow such vast numbers to enter. […]

[I]mmigrants are never held responsible for choosing to come here. Instead, we hear endless complaints that Irish institutions had not prepared themselves properly for their arrival. On the News at One on Monday, African after African in Balbriggan complained there were no places for their children in the existing local schools. Not once was the question posed: what was the real reason for the Africans not having places in schools? Answer: they’d only just come here. Instead, Africans who were just off the boat were allowed to accuse us of racism for not having school places awaiting their children.