A former government minister and West Cork TD who left politics early has compared it to giving up smoking.
Former Minister for Mental Health Jim Daly, chose not to contest the last general election in order to spend more time with his family.
The move has sparked others like Brendan Griffin and Joe McHugh to do the same.
Jim Daly says life working in the private sector is very different:
"You'd have to be a former smoker to what it's like to be a non-smoker afterwards and that freedom. You'd have to wear really, really tight shoes for a period of several hours to actually understand the relief you get when you take off those tight shoes. And it's the same with politics. You really have to be in it to understand what it's like to experience a post-political world".
