Speakers at The Well, Moate. SnD Media photograph, reproduced with permission.

The meeting and its demands

The Sunday meeting followed nationwide fuel demonstrations earlier in the year. The Irish Times reported more than 1,000 people attended The Well, including farmers, agricultural contractors and members of the fishing industry. John Dallon, Christopher Duffy and James Geoghegan were named as organisers.

Speakers sought the abolition of carbon tax on fuel, reductions in other fuel taxes and additional assistance for people facing rising costs. The demands extended beyond fuel: the Irish Times recorded contributions on immigration, data centres, health services and domestic energy exploration.

Organiser John Dallon told RTÉ before the event that the group intended to compile the concerns raised into a document for Government. He cited home-heating costs and the difficulties faced by people living in properties that have not been retrofitted.

What the organisers said

Dallon called for carbon tax to be removed from food production. Duffy said April rebates and diesel relief were insufficient for businesses. Geoghegan relayed a woman's account of costly journeys for hospital care. The last account has not been independently verified by this newspaper. The Irish Times reported all three contributions.

Further demonstrations?

Organisers warned further road actions could follow if Budget measures failed to bring fuel prices down. This was a warning, not a confirmed date or route for another protest.

Representatives of Aontú, Independent Ireland, Sinn Féin and Fine Gael were reported at the meeting. Attendance by politicians does not by itself establish endorsement of every proposal discussed.

Different crowd estimates

The Irish Times reported more than 1,000; SnD Media circulated a venue-owner estimate of 2,800–3,000. The photograph on page 1 shows a busy room but cannot establish attendance across the venue or over the full event.

Submission given to Harris

Two days before the meeting, organiser James Geoghegan told the Irish Times that a written submission had been handed to Tánaiste and Minister for Finance Simon Harris at a Fine Gael event in Navan.

Geoghegan said it requested removal of carbon taxes and an extension of rebates to omitted groups, including parts of plant hire and certain lorry operators. He said some newer operators were disadvantaged because existing rebates used 2025 invoices.

Government's account

Speaking ahead of Moate, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said people had a right to protest, but that economic activity, employment and ports also needed protection. Harris said the Government was examining whether to extend existing excise reductions.

AA Ireland said the planned 1 September excise restoration had been deferred. Its 14 September account stated reduced rates would stay until 31 October, with staged restoration planned from November unless policy changed.

Budget 2027 is due on 6 October. Claims about its eventual decisions cannot be made in advance.

What makes up a litre?

The table reproduces AA Ireland's national September 2026 survey, published 14 September, in cents per litre. It is not a live price quote. RTÉ reported that some forecourts were charging over €2.10 for diesel on 22 September.

AA figures as published, subject to rounding. Source inconsistency: AA's table lists NORA at 0.10c, but its explanatory text gives the ordinary levy as 2c. These have not been independently reconciled; its published totals are reproduced, not independently verified. **Better Energy is an industry charge, not a tax.

Checked 29 September: AA Ireland still lists the 14 September national survey; its next monthly update is due 12 October. Individual pump prices may differ.

Why diesel costs more

On AA's figures diesel's price before listed charges (119.80c) is markedly above petrol's (100.73c), even though diesel's tax-and-charge share is smaller. A higher diesel pump price therefore does not mean higher diesel taxation per litre.

Fifty-litre comparison

At the AA's 14 September survey average, a 50-litre fill was approximately €93.43 petrol or €97.10 diesel. RTÉ reported on 22 September that some diesel forecourts were above €2.10 per litre. These figures must not be mistaken for today's nationwide pump prices.

Young people's assessment

RED C polling published on 22 September by the National Youth Council of Ireland found 68% of respondents aged 18–24 were considering moving abroad. Some 71% believed life could be better outside Ireland.

The same release said 89% agreed the housing crisis disproportionately affected young people; 90% felt secure, well-paid jobs were becoming harder to find. The NYCI said just 17% of young adults thought Government was doing enough on living costs.

Who commissioned the poll?

The NYCI is a representative organisation for youth groups. It commissioned the RED C research and published the results alongside a pre-Budget submission. Its proposals include targeted support for younger workers, students and renters. Those proposals are advocacy; the percentages above are survey findings.

Any interpretation of the 18–24-year-old responses should account for the age-cohort sample and polling uncertainty, rather than treating the figure as a count of all young Irish adults.

More Irish citizens left than returned — while arrivals exceeded departures overall

The CSO's estimates for the 12 months to April 2026 describe two different migration trends. 35,400 Irish citizens moved abroad, while 30,200 Irish citizens moved to Ireland. That is a net outward migration of 5,200 Irish citizens.

Across all nationalities, however, 110,600 people moved into Ireland and 62,500 left. That is net inward migration of 48,100 people overall.

Put simply: more Irish citizens emigrated than immigrated, but Ireland had more arrivals than departures overall. These figures classify people by citizenship, not ethnicity, and include all ages. They do not tell us precisely how many young Irish citizens left.

Why the figures differ

The RED C study asks what young adults contemplate. The CSO counts estimated flows of people across an entire year. The survey's age band is 18–24; the CSO's published young-emigrant band is 15–24. One cannot calculate how many surveyed respondents later emigrated from these aggregates.

Australia remained a destination: CSO estimated 11,800 people left Ireland for Australia in the latest year, 1,700 fewer than the previous year.

A house: €399,999 at the midpoint

The CSO's July Residential Property Price Index reported a €399,999 median paid for dwellings sold during the preceding 12 months. That is the midpoint of recorded purchases, not an asking price or a first-time buyer affordability threshold.

Dublin prices rose 4.4% year-on-year; outside Dublin prices rose 6.4%. The highest median local-authority price was €684,411 in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown; the lowest was €200,000 in Longford.

Purchases, not just prices

The CSO recorded 4,769 household dwelling purchases at market prices filed with Revenue for July, up 1.2% on July 2025. Some 3,418 were existing properties and 1,351 were new dwellings.

Price movements are not uniform. In the year to July, apartments outside Dublin rose 9.2% and houses outside Dublin rose 6.2%. The most recent three months of the price index are provisional.

Affordability also depends on incomes, mortgage terms and deposits; none can be inferred from the median sale price alone.