Connemara’s villages are being drained of community life – by the proliferation of holiday homes that, in some areas, now means weekend arrivals outnumber permanent residents by more than two to one.

The 2016 Census showed that holiday homes comprise over 60% of dwellings between Roundstone and Ballyconneely – with that percentage expected to rise even higher when the findings of the most recent Census are revealed.

Part of this is due to the upsurge in remote working, but the trend was obvious long before Covid – and with rich staycationers bidding on the limited number of properties that come up for sale, the locals are being priced out of the market.

“Young local people will not be able to compete on the open market, even if they wanted to buy a house that would be for sale in Connemara coastal areas,” acknowledged Connemara Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív.

“People are concerned, but there is no simple answer. It is just about impossible to prevent a person from selling her/his property to whom he or she chooses on the open market,” said the former Gaeltacht and Rural Affairs Government Minister.

The post-Covid exodus from urban areas has seen prices in west Connemara rise even higher. A house in the Roundstone area overlooking the sea went on the market some time ago with a price tag of €1.5m. This would clearly be at the top end of the scale, but prices can range up toward the half-million mark and beyond for modest homes – and local people will not be in a position to compete with that.

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