The Government will shortly consider a proposal from the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, that immigration rules should be liberalised to allow a simpler entry process, initially for skilled workers in the information and communications technology area.

Under the proposal, immigrants could get a work visa from an Irish embassy or consulate abroad by producing a valid offer of employment from an Irish employer. The employer would no longer have to petition the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment for a work permit.

An interdepartmental group has calculated that 200,000 new immigrants will be needed over the next seven years or so to maintain the growth of the economy as envisaged under the National Development Plan.

To my mind, it is self-evidently right that a small, open economy has to be open for people, as well as capital, exports, imports, information and travel services.

Still, one can expect that there will be some objections. Some will say, why should we bother trying to keep up the growth at levels that require immigration, anyway? The answer depends on how you plan for the future.

Should we bet that the skilled people we now have will be enough to sustain new business and employment in a very fast-changing world? Or should we facilitate the flow of people to work here in whatever areas a high value-creating society needs them? Never in our history has it proven better not to rely on barriers and protectionism rather than openness. "Sinn fein" won't work in skills and employment.

The skills shortage is not just an Irish phenomenon. There is a world shortage of people who are skilled in information and communications technology. We must do what we can to maximise our share of the pool of people in the world who generate wealth and employment in this area. The appropriate taxation of share options will help. So will a responsive immigration policy.

Some will say that 200,000 is a lot of new workers. There will continue to be people leaving the State for all sorts of reasons, as many as 112,000 workers over seven years, based on recent trends. The net addition to the workforce that is estimated to be required would be around 88,000. The 200,000 figure is a gross number.

Based on immigration patterns of recent years, 80 per cent of the 200,000 are expected to be returning Irish or nationals of European Economic Area member-states (EU plus Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland). None of these 80 per cent need residence or work permits. The new rules proposed by Ms Harney would affect only those from outside the EEA, around 40,000.

Who are these people likely to be?

On recent patterns, 20,000 would be US nationals. Thereafter, it would be nationals of Canada, South Africa and India. The common factor is clearly the English language. The chances are that this pattern of immigration will continue.

Even 100,000 non-Irish immigrants would represent only 2.8 per cent of our present population, which compares with a total foreign-born population of 21 per cent in Australia, 19 per cent in Switzerland, 17 per cent in Canada and 9 per cent in the US. Or 4.7 per cent in Denmark, if you like.

Should the new immigration rules be aimed at high-tech immigrants only? A commitment was made to consult with the social partners in the new Programme for Prosperity and Fairness on the question of immigration for lower-skilled workers.

It doesn't seem fair that an employer who is unable to fill medium or low-skilled jobs must go through a lengthier procedure to offer a job to a non-EEA immigrant than an employer of software writers. The economy needs access to people at all levels in the skills pyramid. A clear gap remains, for example, in immigration policy for child carers and au pairs, an area that other countries address with no fuss.

It would be absurd if immigration for lower-skilled workers were prevented on "social conscience" grounds, that is, for fear of exploiting them, when a minimum wage is in place. If the minimum wage we set, the highest in Europe, is socially acceptable for Irish people, it must also be so for non-Irish people.

The German Chancellor has announced that his government intends to offer 30,000 "green cards" to high-tech personnel from India before the summer, a move not welcomed by German unions. Germany isn't waiting around.

An article in the current issue of Foreign Affairs argued that inflation and interest rates in the US had been kept down by immigration, surely a concern for us too. It also pointed out that nearly half of recent graduates from the Indian Institute of Technology had left for the US, a drain the Indian government would like to reverse.

People move in globally integrated markets to the places where it is most rewarding, in every sense, to live and work. The Republic can be such a place, in one way, by opening the door to greater and more diverse immigration.

Oliver O'Connor is editor of the monthly publication, Finance. E-mail: ooconnor@indigo.ie