Three out of four professionals would consider leaving Ireland in the next three years if the economy does not improve, a new survey has found.

The survey of people from IT, accountancy and engineering backgrounds also found that 14 per cent of professionals who emigrated in the last three years did so for warmer weather.

A desire to live in a warmer climate was particularly evident among accountants, 26 per cent of whom said climate had influenced their decision to move abroad.

Two-thirds of respondents to the survey, carried out by Hays recruitment company, said they were no confident job prospects would improve in Ireland in the next three years, while 81 per cent believe the Government’s Jobs Initiative will not help employment figures.

More than a third (35 per cent) of the survey’s 2,173 respondents said they had left the country in the last three years for work – some to pursue an opportunity and others because they had no other option.

Some 27 per cent left for the UK, 22 per cent for another European country, 15 per cent for Australasia and 7 per cent for North America. Three in five of those who have moved away from Ireland believe the quality of life is better where they live now.