John FitzGerald: Negotiating table with UK reversed by BrexitHistory tells us that bilateral trade agreements with the UK do not suit IrelandFri Aug 12 2016 - 05:30
John FitzGerald: Greater accuracy on national accounts vital for budgetingA better read on the true position is a matter of urgency for the StateFri Aug 05 2016 - 05:45
Extra tax paid to EU must not obscure €2bn corporation bonanzaState should save corporation tax windfall and aim to run a budget surplus in 2017Fri Jul 29 2016 - 06:00
Major changes in UK may destabilise North’s economyLondon must be encouraged to live up to its economic commitments to the NorthFri Jul 22 2016 - 06:25
CSO needs to develop better tools to tell us what’s really going onEven on basis of ‘real’ growth, budget should give little awayFri Jul 15 2016 - 06:00
Carbon tax essential for decarbonising our economiesEmissions trading scheme ran aground when recession made permits worthlessFri Jul 08 2016 - 06:30
John FitzGerald: We must guard against the real risk of an overheating economyOur rapidly growing economy may require higher taxes in the next few yearsTue Jun 21 2016 - 10:16
John FitzGerald: National wellbeing and the feel-good factorAnalysis indicates effect on morale, but an impact also registers on electricity usageTue Jun 14 2016 - 07:00
John FitzGerald: Overlooked welfare system key to avoiding rise in inequalityImproved Irish setup now trying to support people to move from welfare into workTue Jun 07 2016 - 01:00
Recession may have done lasting damage to women in workplaceEarnings may be affected if economic penalty for taking time out of work persistsTue May 31 2016 - 01:00
Economist Brendan Walsh inspired generations of studentsBrendan Walsh was a sharp analyst of Irish economics and societyTue May 24 2016 - 01:00
Breaking up (government departments) is hard to doThe problems facing the Government will not be solved by reorganising departmentsTue May 17 2016 - 06:20
Rewriting history on Ireland’s recent crisisWith an uncertain future, you must examine both what might go right as well as wrongTue May 10 2016 - 01:00
John FitzGerald: Ireland must protect interests under BrexitAnything that may destabilise the Belfast Agreement would be a major concernTue May 03 2016 - 06:00
John FitzGerald: Brexit poses major threat to retail sectorBritain’s exit from EU would cause problems as competitiveness comes under pressureTue Apr 26 2016 - 01:00
Brexit could ratchet up pressure on Dublin housing marketLoss of 10,000 financial sector jobs in London may mean firms move in search of EU ‘asylum’Tue Apr 19 2016 - 08:00
John FitzGerald: Data collected by census is invaluable‘From an early stage in my career I have had a certain fascination for the census’Tue Apr 12 2016 - 08:02
Sustaining Northern standard of living is a costly exerciseUnited Ireland not possible if South has to pick up bill for subsidised Northern economyTue Apr 05 2016 - 10:25
John FitzGerald: NTMA actions a lesson in facing economic crisesBorrowing strategy of agency before and after bailout gave Ireland a valuable cushionTue Mar 29 2016 - 01:00
Roland Fryer’s research informed by his own life storyAward-winning economist first studied racial differences in educational performanceTue Mar 22 2016 - 13:09
National accounts skewed by foreign-owned firms and spurious R&DWith real growth running at 5% a major expansion in investment is needed soonTue Mar 15 2016 - 07:27
John FitzGerald: Learning from Britain’s housing crisisAddressing housing in Ireland can be helped by looking at good and bad policies in the UKTue Mar 08 2016 - 01:00
Overheating Irish economy would need urgent remedial actionAfter four years of buoyant growth it is important to consider whether the economy is expanding beyond its potentialTue Mar 01 2016 - 01:00
John FitzGerald: Main parties’ manifestos fall short on welfare paymentsOf four main parties in #ge16, Labour is only one that gets close to indexationTue Feb 23 2016 - 06:00
Election pledges are subject to vagaries of economyUnlike in past elections, this time there is broad acceptance of underlying fiscal constraintsTue Feb 16 2016 - 01:00
Election tax debate needs new focusTaxes on property or energy may have less impact on labour market behaviourTue Feb 09 2016 - 05:30
Crash crushed competition in bankingBanking union holds out the prospect of recreating an integrated EU banking marketTue Feb 02 2016 - 06:30
John FitzGerald: Changing pattern of family formationIreland’s marriage and baby demographics have slowly grown closer to those in other European countriesTue Jan 26 2016 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: Tax cut promises may be short-sighted‘Behavioural economics teaches us that people are not especially grateful for today’s income increase, but are mad as hell if, in future, it gets taken away’Tue Jan 19 2016 - 10:49
John FitzGerald: Early adopters can pay a heavy priceCost of wind technology has fallen sharply and same is happening with solar power but charging structure reform needed to ensure poor do not bear disproportionate costTue Jan 12 2016 - 06:00
John FitzGerald: Policymaking in the face of uncertaintyToo often policies are formed on the assumption that tomorrow will be very like today, and that surprises, pleasant or unpleasant, never happenTue Jan 05 2016 - 06:00
Dublin Airport a reflection of recovering Irish economy set to gain altitudeAnother runway may be needed if traffic through the airport continues to growTue Dec 22 2015 - 07:30
John FitzGerald: Crucial for North that UK stays in EUDevolved government has brought peace but it has not yet brought economic stabilityTue Dec 15 2015 - 07:30
Education key to rapid fall in long-term jobless rateRecovery such that full employment is now achievable within three yearsTue Dec 08 2015 - 06:30
Pricing a key tool to encourage carbon-neutral energyTackling climate change requires incentivising new technology to produce ‘clean’ energyTue Dec 01 2015 - 07:23
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
