Fears Donald Trump's election could result in more refugees and rising costs in Ireland

There are fears among senior government ministers in Ireland that the return of Donald Trump to the White House could have disastrous consequences for Ireland, according to the Irish Independent. 

Trump was forthright in his 'America First' stance in all three of his election campaigns and he has openly said he would try to encourage US companies based in the likes of Ireland to return to American soil. In order to do that, he has promised to drop the US corporation tax rate to 15%, the same as Ireland.

That could result in less money in the Irish economy and a higher risk of a new cost of living crisis, but some ministers have played down the risk, according to the report. They say these US companies are here for more than the tax rate, including the concentration of top talent.

Civil servants here are also working on the presumption that more refugees from Ukraine will have to make their way to Ireland with Trump as US President. He has vowed to pull US support from Ukraine, which may mean a worsening of the situation there as the Russian invasion continues.

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Joe Biden had been a longtime supporter of Ukraine and their president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Ukraine is heavily reliant on foreign support like that from the US to maintain its resistance against Putin's Russian forces.