Beware of depending on tax bonus from multinationals ’ exceptional profitabilityWe learned in 2008 how a revenue stream – property tax – could vanish overnightTue Nov 24 2015 - 06:30
Giving developers a free ride on water infrastructure not an answerLandowners have role to play in proper funding of infrastructure for vital servicesTue Nov 17 2015 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: Why longer working lives benefit societyFacilitating the over-65s to stay at work increases productivity and saves on pensionsTue Nov 10 2015 - 06:30
Better public services will inevitably mean higher taxesIreland is one of lowest spenders on public investment among developed economiesTue Nov 03 2015 - 07:30
Tax breaks are no solution for Ireland’s growing housing crisisCutting VAT would benefit land-owners – the losers would be the people of IrelandTue Oct 27 2015 - 13:35
John FitzGerald: Multinationals are not as important as CSO suggestsUsing adjusted figures, MNEs contributed less than 10 per cent of GNP last yearTue Oct 20 2015 - 08:15
John FitzGerald: How do we strengthen public bodies to stand up to pressure?Even independent public servants may find it difficult to resist strong lobbyingTue Oct 13 2015 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: Regulating private and public monopoliesIf competition is introduced in the right way, it can benefit companies and consumersTue Oct 06 2015 - 06:15
John FitzGerald: Economic recovery has some way to goInvestment in Ireland is well below what would be expected in a developed economyTue Sept 29 2015 - 07:30
What’s wrong with the financial services industry here?State policy on attracting financial sector entities needs to be more discriminatingTue Sept 22 2015 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: ‘neutral’ budget seems right for 2016A policy of economic neutrality means keeping the average rate of tax broadly unchangedTue Sept 15 2015 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: Low interest rates are a double-edged swordLow interest rates are affecting retired people but benefitting indebted households with young familiesTue Sept 08 2015 - 07:30
Why is Ireland now more expensive than Germany?Ireland is one of the most expensive countries in the EU, only exceeded by Denmark.Tue Sept 01 2015 - 07:43
John FitzGerald: Revised CSO figures are a dose of reality on deficitNew data show that, instead of a significant surplus in 2014 (as suggested by the unrevised data), Ireland had a very small deficit – exports were lower than importsTue Aug 25 2015 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: The calm after the eruptionIn contrast to Greece, growth is well under way in Ireland, Iceland, Latvia, Estonia, Portugal and SpainTue Jul 28 2015 - 12:18
City economies also need cultureThere is no simple answer to what makes a city attractive to a modern workforce. The one thing that is certain is that making cities good to live in is important economically as well as sociallyTue Jul 21 2015 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: Ireland’s false sense of security over energy supplyGovernment’s failure to build second North-South interconnector creates risksTue Jul 14 2015 - 01:45
China faces challenges in AsiaChina has a short window of opportunity to build the infrastructure it needsTue Jul 07 2015 - 01:45
IFAC questions wisdom of fiscal stimulus in 2016 BudgetDepartment of Finance’s latest medium-term scenario for public finances is ‘unrealistic’Tue Jun 30 2015 - 01:45
ECB has proved itself useful in a crisisWhile ECB interest rate decisions have not always been wise, since EMU began inflation has averaged 1.9 per cent a year; the ECB has met its objectiveTue Jun 23 2015 - 02:00
Globalisation distorts Irish economyGNP remains the best, though still imperfect, measure of economic welfareTue Jun 16 2015 - 11:12
Economic and Monetary Union - learning by doing?Many blame EMU for the great recession, but that ignores the fact that the crisis also seriously affected the UK and the United StatesTue Jun 09 2015 - 01:25
Achieving an educated workforce is a long-term strategyAfter 30 years’ investment in education, more than half of young people go on to third levelTue Jun 02 2015 - 01:45
John FitzGerald: The bigger the population, the greater the housing needNESC report shows how much hard thinking needs to be done on housing policyTue May 26 2015 - 01:45
John Fitzgerald: Paying the right price for energyGerman charging of citizens over industry for renewables not the way to goTue May 19 2015 - 01:45
Promissory note profit hidden in Central Bank footnoteBonus on notes deal won’t offset the cost of what Irish public has been throughTue May 12 2015 - 01:45
Public pay: strive for parity not a premiumPublic pay policy should strive for broad parity with the private sector for equivalent skills, experience and effortTue May 05 2015 - 10:15
Is collaboration or competition best strategy for economists?Irish economists have become more open to learning from other disciplinesTue Apr 28 2015 - 01:45
A fair deal for end-of-life careThe problem with the Fair Deal scheme is that it is underfunded and a waiting list has built upTue Apr 21 2015 - 01:45
Unpopularity of job-friendly taxes makes for policy quandaryMajor reform of tax system would require a strong governmentTue Apr 14 2015 - 10:53
Ireland still among the rich, relativelyIreland’s high standard of living in 2007 coloured the initial reaction to its woes when the recession hit – Greece is experiencing similar comparisons at the other end of the scaleMon Apr 06 2015 - 01:45
John FitzGerald: Time to build on our economic turnaroundIreland may be able to recover about half of the very large sum needed to recapitalise the banksTue Mar 31 2015 - 01:40
Solution to global warming will be found in new technologiesIt is our grandchildren who will benefit from applying the brakes today to bring the momentum of climate change to a slow haltTue Mar 24 2015 - 01:40
How is the economic recovery for you?Most indicators are good, but there are big variations in how different groups are faringTue Mar 17 2015 - 02:00
How our education system affects the economy of the futureCountries that prioritise education see the benefits decades laterTue Mar 10 2015 - 01:45
The pathway to Germany’s low unemploymentReunification came at a significant cost to the German economy in the short termTue Mar 03 2015 - 07:40
Finding out what makes people switch on and offJohn FitzGerald looks at how the best way to approach the Irish Water issue and make savingsTue Feb 24 2015 - 01:45
John FitzGerald: Where did the €30bn in cuts go?Because unemployment trebled in the crisis, the cost of unemployment payments also mushroomedTue Feb 17 2015 - 11:55
Low oil prices will have knock-on effects of deflation and environmental harmIt takes a while for people to react to shifting oil prices but market law prevailsTue Feb 10 2015 - 02:30
Home-grown business is driving the recovery more strongly than multinationalsForeign direct investment is vital to jobs but the real source of growth is indigenousTue Feb 03 2015 - 12:00
John FitzGerald: electricity bills should reflect falling gas priceIf electricity prices do not fall in coming months, the regulator should protect the interests of the consumerTue Jan 27 2015 - 01:45
Counting the cost of election promisesPolitical parties here still not subject to independent costing of election undertakingsTue Jan 20 2015 - 01:25
‘Vital Statistics’ sheds light on inequalities in life expectancyCSO figures show a strong class gradient in health status and life expectancyTue Jan 13 2015 - 01:20
John FitzGerald: What Europe could do about low inflationMario Draghi would like to see a more stimulatory fiscal policy in EuropeMon Jan 05 2015 - 16:55
Recovering economy may make homing pigeons of emigrantsA major change for emigrants has been the dramatic fall in the cost of staying in touchMon Dec 22 2014 - 18:42
Extensive research contradicts Ukip view of immigrationPopular prejudice rather than facts is driving the UK debate on EU migrationTue Dec 16 2014 - 12:19
The EU’s struggle with climate changePast mistakes have made emissions policy even more importantTue Dec 09 2014 - 01:35
Housing shortages and rising rents result of failure to plan for growing populationThe rise in population means we need to increase the supply of homes to rent and to buyTue Dec 02 2014 - 09:46
Getting Ireland’s budget balance rightFiscal strategy is important in order to guide decisions of political parties and wider publicTue Nov 25 2014 - 08:04
