The average Irish worker is the 9th best paid in the world according to the International Labour Organization. And that's taking into account the cost of living in Ireland and elsewhere. Employees are paid US$5,400 a month here on average. (The best paid live in Luxembourg, Belgium & Netherlands) 🇮🇪💶

More than half of all Irish adults attended some form of artistic performance in the past year - and among those aged under 35, 70% did. Music and the movies are the most popular, with approximately 2 million people going to at least one concert and the same number to one or more films. 🇮🇪🧑‍🎤📽️

Ireland is one of only 6 European countries with a government budget surplus. 🇮🇪 Only Norway, Denmark, Greece, Cyprus, Ireland & Switzerland aren't borrowing to keep their countries running. Like Norway, we should invest the funds to secure long-term wealth for future generations.

Inequality in the EU is in decline, but in the USA it continues to increase. 🇪🇺🇺🇸 The EU's gain is primarily because incomes in poorer member states increased. In Ireland, income inequality decreased markedly, is well below the EU average and now on par with Finland & Sweden. 🇮🇪

Far-right social media posts about Ireland are predominantly by people outside the country. 75% are from users in the UK, US, Australia or elsewhere. X is the main amplifier of this content. They are also a tiny number - research shows most harmful content is produced by only 3–7% of users.

Did you know the world is becoming a happier place? It's a fact. We're doing better than you think we are. Hear me talk about that and what we can learn from the science of happiness with teenage podcaster and author Sonia Marta. 🎧 open.spotify.com/episode/47Mo...

The media in Ireland is the 7th freest in the world. 🇮🇪 The Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index rates 180 countries annually. It judges the overall climate for press freedom in Ireland as positive, with journalists able to work freely and without interference. 👏

There has been a 33% surge in the number of homes built in the first 3 months of this year compared with the same time in 2025. 7,856 houses and apartments were built - the highest level of dwelling completions since records began in 2011. 🇮🇪🏘️ www.rte.ie/news/busines...

The Irish listen to more audiobooks and read more e-books than any other European nation! 25% of Ireland's internet users bought an audiobook or e-book in a 3 month period last year. That's more than twice the EU average, and the number is growing. 🇮🇪📚🎧 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/...

The Irish roads are the 7th safest out of 32 European nations. However, there is much room for improvement. Norway's roads are twice as safe as ours - there are 16 road deaths for every million residents there, compared to 32 in Ireland. 🇮🇪🚶🚴🚗🚚 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/...

30% of young Irish people engage in civic or political issues online - e.g. expressing their opinion on issues or taking part in online consultations or voting. That's the 5th highest in Europe, and a sign of a healthy democracy in Ireland. 🇮🇪 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/...

Irish people spend less than 10% of their household expenditure on groceries. Among Europeans, only those in Ireland and Luxembourg spend so little of their income on food and non-alcoholic drinks, leaving 90% of their monies available to cover everything else. 🇮🇪 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/sta...

The Irish are among the heaviest users of social media in Europe. 80% of people in Ireland do so, and it's 94% of those aged 16-29 years. But heavy use can make us unhappy 📱☹️ - read this www.markhenry.ie/articles/soc... (Data source: ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/...)

There is mounting evidence that social media is undermining our happiness. Here's what we know and what we can do about it. www.markhenry.ie/articles/soc...

The deaths of young children has fallen by 60% in the past 25 years! The number of under 5s dying worldwide is down 60% & new-born deaths have halved. That's millions of lives saved thanks to immunisation, better nutrition & health services. Well done world 🌍👏 data.unicef.org/resources/le...

The Irish are big savers. Households in Ireland saved an average of 9% of household income in 2024. That was nearly twice the UK rate - although we've some way to go to match Sweden's 16%. 🇮🇪💶 www.visualcapitalist.com/household-sa... @visualcap.bsky.social

The value of goods exported from Ireland has grown dramatically from only €11 billion in 1984 to €224 billion in 2024 - that's an incredible twenty-fold increase. Our trade balance has risen from zero to a €89bn surplus. Wow. 🇮🇪📈 www.cso.ie/en/releasesa...

Elderly people in Ireland are the healthiest in the EU. Among those aged 65+, Ireland has the highest share who rate their health as very good or good (62%). Beyond the European Union, only the Swiss and the Swedes claim a healthier proportion. 🇮🇪👴👵 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/...

Confidence in Irish banks has recovered to pre-crash levels. In 2008/9, Ireland experienced the world's largest-ever decline in trust in financial institutions (-43%pts) to reach just 13%. Now 64% of people say they have confidence in them - the same as 2006 🇮🇪 news.gallup.com/poll/702233/...

Ireland is the 7th most democratic nation in the world today. Norway, New Zealand & Iceland top the list. During a period of "democratic recession" worldwide, we can be proud of Ireland's electoral process, political culture and popular participation. 🇮🇪👏 www.economist.com/interactive/...

Crime is declining in Ireland. The number of recorded incidents fell across most offence groups last year. The most significant decreases were in homicide (-25%), kidnapping (-21%), burglary (-13%), and robbery/extortion (-11%). 👍 www.cso.ie/en/releasesa...

Ireland is the 5th freest nation in the world, with full political rights and near-ideal civil liberties. The country sits alongside Finland, Norway, Sweden & New Zealand. At a time when global freedom is in decline, Ireland is a beacon of positivity. 🇮🇪 freedomhouse.org/report/freed...

Finland is crowned the happiest country in the world for the ninth year in a row in the new World Happiness Report. Ireland is 13th happiest - its highest ranking since 2012, which makes it the happiest English-speaking country after New Zealand. 🇮🇪😁 www.independent.ie/opinion/comm...

The world can learn a lot from Ireland this #StPatricksDay. The Irish have never been healthier, wealthier, better educated, or happier. They have uncovered the blueprint for national well-being. Watch my TEDx talk to learn from Ireland's success 🇮🇪☘️ www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8LO...

Ireland takes the world record! Irish actors have won more Oscars (per capita) than those of any other nation. 🇮🇪🎉 With Jessie Buckley's win, and claiming Daniel Day-Lewis as our own, the Irish are twice as successful at picking up the golden statue as American or British actors.

Irish people have faith in our electoral system. More than 8-in-10 agree elections are conducted in accordance with the law, and 7-in-10 agree elections are well managed and officials are fair. A well-functioning democracy is key to Ireland's progress. 🇮🇪 www.electoralcommission.ie/media-releas...

The number of women in the workforce has doubled in the past 30 years in Ireland. There are now 1.33 million women with jobs - 70% of whom work full-time and 30% part-time. The gap with males in employment has never been so narrow. 🇮🇪 www.cso.ie/en/releasesa...

Ireland is one of the best places in the world for economic opportunities for women. The World Bank assesses 190 economies on how laws, policies, and practices shape opportunities for women. Legal rights in Ireland are the 6th strongest globally. 🇮🇪👩‍⚖️👏 wbl.worldbank.org/en/publicati...

Dublin is the 19th best city in Europe says a review of 180 places. Dublin is deemed highly livable, lovable and prosperous. It's ranked #1 for Economic Output, #9 for biking, and #11 for walkability. 🇮🇪🚲🚶 www.worldsbestcities.com/rankings/eur...

Humankind is making good progress reducing environmental pollution. e.g. oil spills from tankers were common in the 1970s with 70 to 100 spills a year. The number has fallen by 90% since then. In the last decade, no year has had more than 10 spills 👏 ourworldindata.org/data-insight...

Ireland is one of the best countries in Europe in ensuring no one is left behind. A new index tracks progress on income & gender inequality, poverty, and access to services. Ireland ranks 7th of 35 European countries. There is always more to be done, but this is a good place to be. 🇮🇪

The number of people in employment in Ireland has hit a record high of 2.83 million. Astonishingly, that figure has doubled in less than 30 years. The country is a much better place now than it was in the 1990s. 🇮🇪👍 www.cso.ie/en/releasesa...

The Irish public sector is one of the best at embracing digital technologies. Ireland is ranked 7th out of 42 countries in the OECD's Digital Government Index. Great progress in the past few years means we're as digitised now as Norway, Estonia & Denmark. 🇮🇪🧑‍💻 www.oecd.org/en/publicati...

Irish people are strong supporters of a fairer economy. Three-quarters (76%) believe the government should take measures to reduce differences in income between people. That's higher than any other Northern Europe country (we're more Scandinavian than the Scandinavians themselves!) 🇮🇪

Ireland is one of the best places in the world for young people to live. The Youth Progress Index tracks quality of life and the extent to which youth rights are enjoyed globally. Ireland ranks 10th out of 169 nations. Not perfect, but doing very well. 🇮🇪👏 youthprogressindex.org/ranking2

More than nine-in-ten Irish people believe our country has benefitted from EU membership. 🇮🇪🇪🇺 That's the 2nd highest figure of any member state (just behind Malta). Ireland would not be as wealthy and modern a country today if we had not joined in 1973. europa.eu/eurobaromete...

Ireland has achieved near gender parity in science and engineering. 47% of Irish scientists and engineers are female. That's on par with Spain and just behind Denmark (49%) and Latvia (51%). Great progress that will have meaningful benefits for society. 🇮🇪👩‍🔬 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/...

Ireland is the 12th least corrupt country in the world. 🇮🇪🎉 Transparency International find that corruption is worsening globally. Ireland, however, is among the countries that significantly reduced corruption since 2012. Something to be celebrated, but never taken for granted.

Ireland has seen good growth in forests in recent years. Surprisingly, we are one of the least forested countries in the EU but there was positive growth of 7% in 2023 and 6% in 2024. It's important progress that helps with climate change and can reduce flooding. 🇮🇪🌲 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/...

Ireland has a highly independent judiciary and courts system. 7-in-10 Irish people agree this is the case. And our system is far more independent than is typical elsewhere in the EU - only 5-in-10 European citizens agree that their system is independent. 🇮🇪⚖️ www.lawsociety.ie/policy-and-l...

The world became MORE equal over the past 25 years. The share of global consumption of the world's poorest nearly doubled, while that of the richest declined. The shift is driven mostly by gains in low- and middle-income economies as poorer countries grew faster than rich ones.

A beautiful milestone was reached in the EU last year: more electricity was generated by wind and solar than by fossil fuels for the first time. Ireland isn't quite there yet, but we're making good progress so hopefully by 2027 🤞🇮🇪 ember-energy.org/latest-insig...

It's wonderful to see a 20% increase in the number of new homes built in Ireland last year 🇮🇪🏘️📈. The 36,284 new dwellings was the highest number since the Statistics Office began counting in 2011. Half were in housing estates, one-third apartments, and the rest one-offs. Good progress, more to do.

Real wages are growing again in Ireland. Wage growth exceeded inflation for 8 of the past 10 years, but not in 2022 & 2023 when high inflation saw our wage packet shrink. For the past 2 years we've been back to real wage increases, and this should continue this year and next 🇮🇪👍

The majority of people in Ireland believe that the government needs to spend more on our military. 58% of us agree with this. Given the increased threat from Russia, we should act quickly to support Europe's freedom and security. 🇮🇪🪖 www.ipsos.com/en/halifax-r...

Ireland is the 5th freest nation in the world. The Atlantic Council assesses 164 nations on economic & political freedom and the rule of law. Ireland places only behind Denmark, Luxembourg, Sweden & Switzerland. That's worth celebrating 🇮🇪👍 freedom-and-prosperity-indexes.atlanticcouncil.org/rankings

The Irish passport is one of the world's most powerful. It provides visa-free access to 185 countries and territories, making it the joint 9th most useful passport in the world. 🇮🇪🎉 Ireland's EU membership makes the greatest contribution to our high ranking. www.henleyglobal.com/passport-ind...

Look at this 👇. For the first time, the majority of new cars sold in Ireland last year were hybrid or fully electric. 6-in-10 of all new cars are newly powered, with diesel- or petrol-only cars in continuing decline. Our transition to cleaner driving is well underway. 🇮🇪👏 www.cso.ie/en/releasesa...

Ireland is the 8th most socially progressive nation in the world, says the new Global Social Progress Index. The country is rated highly as an inclusive and safe society, with strong rights and freedoms, and excellent educational participation. 🇮🇪🎉 www.socialprogress.org/social-progr...

Irish workers are the world's best equipped with the new skills needed for the rapidly changing work environment, according to the IMF. What sets us apart is investment in tertiary education and lifelong learning programs that help workers adapt as technology evolves. 🇮🇪🥇 www.imf.org/en/blogs/art...