Page 22 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Ireland

20  INTRODUCING IRELAND

such as shipbuilding, declined and new
investors were scared away. However, the
election of members to the new Northern
Ireland Assembly in June 1998 ushered in
a new political and economic era for the
North. For both parts of Ireland, geo-
g raphy is still a barrier to prosperity.
Located on the periphery of Europe, the
island is isolated from its main markets
and thus saddled with high transport
costs. Subsidies from the EU have helped
improve infrastructure in the Republic.

Religion and Politics
The influence of Catholicism is still felt
but not to the extent that it once was.
Irish Catholicism runs the gamut from
missionary zeal to simple piety. In recent
years, attendance at Mass has dropped
off considerably and some estimates now
place attendance at less than 50 per cent.
Mary Robinson, the first woman to be elected president in 1990 Moral conser vatism is, however, still
most evident in attitudes to abortion.
the Republic seemed an old-fashioned The election of liberal lawyer Mary
place, poorer than almost all its fellow Robinson as President in 1990, the first
members of the European Union. woman to hold the post, was seen as
a sign of more enlightened times by
Economic Development many people, an attitude reinforced by
Tax breaks and low inflation have attracted the election of Mary McAleese as her
foreign investment to the Republic and successor in 1998. A new political
many multinationals have sub sidiaries climate has favoured the quiet spread
here. Ireland joined the single European of feminism and challenged the old
currency in 1999 and the economy paternalism of Irish politics.
boomed from the mid-1990s to
2007. The years since 2008 have
been difficult. Unemployment
fuelled emigration; property rates
dropped and the national debt
soared, but in September 2013, the
Republic officially put the Recession
behind it and the economy has
slowly improved since.
An important industry for Ireland
is tourism. The South receives over
6.5 million visitors a year and the
North receives 1.7 million visitors.
Traditionally, Northern Ireland
had far more industry than the
South, but during the 25 years of
the “Troubles”, old heavy industries, Pavement artist on O’Connell Street, Dublin

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