"We don't have the ability to force redundancy or force exit, so essentially we had to create a culture with a pull factor, " notes Martin O'Halloran, the project manager for Eircom's access network.

FORBES: The Irish way

This argument cuts little ice with Migration Watch chairman, former diplomat Sir Andrew Green, who says the presence of a settled Romanian population in the UK is a "pull factor" that will encourage more to make the journey.

BBC: Composite of images from romania

"Europe's debt crisis is the first factor to pull down exports, and the pace of decline is striking, " said Masayuki Kichikawa from Bank Of America Merrill Lynch in Tokyo.

BBC: Japan exports fall on weak demand in China and Europe