28 percent of young people say they want to leave Ireland - SEE POLL

Read more: Emigration suddenly a major issue in Irish election as poll date nears

Fully 28% of young people between the ages of 16-24 say they will emigrate from Ireland, according to a new poll.

Meanwhile, 19% of those 25-34 and 9% of those 35-44 also state that they are set to leave.

The shocking new numbers come in a poll taken of 1,000 Irish people by Amarach Research, Ireland’s top market research company.

In a sad note, even 3% of those over 45 say they too will hit the emigrant trail because the economy has gone so bad in Ireland.

The preferred destination by far is Australia, with 39% saying they will go there. The U.K. is the preferred destination of 17%; the U.S. is the country of choice for 12%. Canada was chosen by 11% of respondents, while just 1% picked New Zealand. The balance will go to different destinations.

The poll shows that emigration is evenly based throughout Ireland, unlike in previous patterns where it was overwhelmingly from rural Ireland.

Across all ages, 11% in Dublin say they will leave, 15% in Leinster, 10% in Munster and 12% in Ulster and Connacht.

Ireland is expected to lose up to 100,000 people to emigration by April 2012 according to the latest figures. The numbers are trending far higher than the last previous exodus in the 1980s during the last major economic recession.