Posts tagged ‘Economy’
Economy: Resolving Ireland’s crisis
Friday, May 13th, 2011The Government’s crisis resolution strategy is the correct one for a “treacherous” economic environment, writes Professor John McHale. The brief burst of optimism that followed the recent publication of the bank stress tests has faded. As fears of a Greek precedent on debt restructuring grow, and Portugal joins Greece and Ireland in the bail-out club, market yields have jumped back above their pre-stress test levels, indicating continued high expectations of an Irish default. Debate has inevitably returned to the appropriateness of Ireland’s crisis resolution strategy. Restoring...[full story]
Economy: Noonan in finance
Thursday, March 31st, 2011A political veteran takes on his toughest brief so far. Michael Noonan needs few lessons in the nuances of cabinet government nor in the hardships of leadership. The deficit and bail-out make the Minister for Finance post as unpopular as it is important. Appointed Minister for Justice just 18 months into his Dáil career, the Limerick City TD also oversaw health in the last Fine Gael-Labour administration. A former teacher, he represented Limerick East for nearly 30 years from 1981, before contesting the new seat in February. Fearing heavy losses, the party deposed John Bruton only for...[full story]
Economy: Changing priorities for Bruton
Thursday, March 31st, 2011Enterprise, Jobs and Investment Minister Richard Bruton is returning to a department he last led in 1994 and a familiar face may be no bad thing. Emma Blee writes. Richard Bruton is no stranger to the Department of Enterprise but during his 17-year break a lot has changed. While his priorities then would have been to build on the boom of the Celtic Tiger, he will now be tasked with ensuring Ireland’s economic recovery. A native of Meath, politics and economics have always been a passion for Bruton. He graduated from Oxford with a MPhil in economics and completed a thesis on the subject...[full story]
Economy: Inward investment: the key to recovery
Thursday, March 31st, 2011Economist Alan Gray explains why foreign investment will be the basis for Ireland’s economic recovery and outlines key areas of strength. Ireland’s economy faces a critical decade to restore economic growth and to refocus away from the damaging transitory absorption with property. Given the scale of the challenges facing the Irish and European economies and the policy errors made in other areas, Ireland must now build a sustainable platform for growth. Despite the dramatic post-crisis developments in the Irish economy, which have seen an escalation in Irish public debt and the related...[full story]
Economy: Ireland, the €uro & the economic crisis
Thursday, March 31st, 2011Ireland’s underlying development strategy is as sound today as it was prior to joining the euro-zone, says economist Dr John Bradley. Just as the Celtic Tiger economy of the 1990s gave rise to a media industry explaining, ex-post, how it all came about, its demise has also spawned a cacophony of racy, ex-post exegesis. A common characteristic of boom and bust is that commentators are wise after the event, but seldom before. ‘The Pope’s Children’ (2005) was filled with praise for the new Irish entrepreneurial class and hardly hinted at unsustainability. ‘The Generation Game’...[full story]
Economy: Housing trends
Thursday, March 31st, 2011House prices have not yet reached a trough and there won’t be a major upturn in the housing market until economic growth becomes sustained, writes the ESRI’s David Duffy. Although a number of other countries experienced housing booms at the same time as Ireland, the extent of the fall in Irish house prices has been more severe than that experienced elsewhere. There are a number of different house price measures for the Irish market which, having peaked in late 2006 or early 2007, show that house prices are now at least 30 per cent from peak, with some measures showing declines of...[full story]
Economy: Financial regulation
Thursday, March 31st, 2011Ensuring openness and accountability in Ireland’s financial sector could translate into a more open political culture, argues Professor Gregory Connor. The global financial crisis of 2008 created an international political consensus on the need to tighten regulation of the financial services industry. From an Irish perspective, the benefits of new, tighter financial regulation should not be over- sold. Such changes will have limited impact on Ireland’s deep financial problems. Over the short term, it is possible that some of these reforms might make things worse. Nonetheless, it...[full story]
Economy: Taxing times
Thursday, March 31st, 2011New research highlights the gap between headline corporate tax rates and what companies actually pay. Emma Blee reports. Amid pressure to raise the level of corporation tax in Ireland in return for lower interest on bailout loans, a World Bank-PwC report has revealed that the rate of effective tax in other countries is much lower than in Ireland. The actual rate of corporation tax is the official figure which is set by the Government but the effective – or headline – rate is the level that most companies pay. The effective rate gives a more accurate picture of taxation as it takes...[full story]
Economy: Growing the real economy
Thursday, March 31st, 2011The new Government faces “daunting but not insurmountable challenges on the economy”, according to ICTU’s economic advisor Paul Sweeney. He believes that policymakers must learn from history and avoid making the same mistakes again. The Celtic Tiger phase of growth was always temporary. It was rapid catch-up on Europe and we did so magnificently. There was a real boom for 15 years to 2001. The strong economic growth lifted Ireland onto a modern plane. It was based on superb productivity growth in most sectors and on other real economic factors. This resulted in a phenomenal increase...[full story]
Economy: A reforming department
Thursday, March 31st, 2011Peter Cheney considers the tough task awaiting the new Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. External examples of change, especially from the UK, will have a strong bearing on the brief. Reforming the public sector is the unfinished business from Ireland’s boom years. The state can no longer afford a large workforce but unions will fight strongly to protect posts. The state-employed workforce grew alongside the real economy, from 233,078 in 2000 to 309,804 last year. Health staff are the largest single group (109,100). Jobs have already started to go with a 9,032 decrease over...[full story]
