Giveaway budget risks overheating the Irish economy – Central Bank warns

The Central Bank of Ireland has warned the Government to avoid a budgetary giveaway in advance of the general election. Eoin Burke-Kennedy reports.

Eoin also explains why the Central Bank has been so direct in warning the Government against taking measures that risk overheating the economy at a time when it is operating at close to capacity.

They’re tax efficient but should you invest in trusts? Fiona Reddan examines the pros and cons in our weekly Your Money feature. If you’d like to read more about the issues that affect your finances try signing up to On the Money, the weekly newsletter from our personal finance team, which will be issued every Friday to Irish Times subscribers.

Irish holidaymakers face “almost inevitable” strikes at Aer Lingus in coming weeks after pilots voted overwhelmingly for industrial action in their pursuit of 20 per cent-plus pay increases from the airline, with disruption possible before the end of June. Barry O’Halloran reports on the latest ballot result of pilots.

Fair City bears the brunt as RTÉ shrinks for its ‘third age’

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Car parking at Dublin Airport is big business, so why has the sale of the unused QuickPark facility stalled?

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Taylor Swift fans aren’t the only ones to suffer setlist envy

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How not to do industrial policy

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In an analysis piece, Barry outlines the claims of both sides in a pay dispute that has rumbled for months, and saw just six out of 668 Aer Lingus pilots vote against industrial action.

In her weekly media column, Laura Slattery explains why Paschal Sheehy’s lighthearted ‘I have scored, Eileen’ remark is good for RTÉ News.

In our personal finance Q&A, a reader wonders if it is worth investing in retrofitting their home as pensioners. Dominic Coyle offers a view.

In Me & My Money, Wendy Stunt, chief marketing officer of Future Horizons, recalls saving for her wedding in 2007. “We knuckled down for the year previous so we could have everyone we wanted there,” she tells Tony Clayton-Lea.

Vodafone Ireland expects to complete the shut-off of its 3G mobile network before next spring, its chief executive has said, after closing the network in Limerick and Cork cities in recent weeks. Ian Curran has the details.

The summer of sport in Europe – with Euro 2024 in Germany and the Olympics in Paris – offers a chance for pubs, hotels and the travel trade to cash in on a spike in consumer spending. Cantillon examines new research on the likely splurge by fans all across the Continent.

Cantillon also ponders recent housing data from China that highlights the property slump unfolding there, in spites tens of billions of supports from the Government to prop up the market and try to ease the impact on the wider economy.

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