National and Regional Demographic Trends

This address draws together some simple figures on long term trends in the distribution of the population of Ireland by region and type of settlement. Much of the material contained in this paper is very straight-forward and calls for little commentary. Its value lies in making available a broad perspective on past developments against which our successes and failures in regional planning should be evaluated. Towards the end of the paper some comments are made on this topic, and, in conclusion, some tentative data is presented on the implications of past trends and policies for the future.