The obsession with short-term fiscal deficits locks us in to ‘getting back to normal’-low wages and inadequate, under-resourced vital services
As we enter the fourth month of lockdown and phase 2 of easing restrictions the discussion turns to the ‘sustainability’ of the pandemic emergency income supports. Depending on who you are talking to, sustainability might mean one of several things. It is important to remember however, that the...
How is the labour market on the Island of Ireland coping with the impact of Covid-19?
In our latest blog, NERI Co-director Paul Mac Flynn looks at how new support programmes pose a challenge for estimating the impact of Covid-19 public health measures on unemployment, both North and South. Over the last few weeks we have formed a rough picture of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic...
Employment and access to childcare during the Covid-19 crisis
The roadmap proposals for how to ease out of lockdown put forward by the Republic of Ireland Government and the Northern Ireland Executive appear to have given no thought to the challenges presented by the misalignment between businesses reopening and access to childcare. This weeks blog summarises...
Unlocking the economy: a slow and steady stepwise approach
In our latest blog, NERI Co-director Dr Tom McDonnell looks at ways of unlocking the economy and preparing for our new future. Predictions that the global economy is entering its worst recession since the great depression are being realised. The first quarter data is dire and the second quarter data...
NERI Video Series ep 10 - Implications of the fallout from Coronavirus on housing
In NERI Video Series ep 10, NERI economists Paul Goldrick-Kelly and Ciarán Nugent discuss the implications of the fallout from the Coronavirus on housing in Ireland.
Decent employment for younger generations should be the focus of the stimulus package
In our latest blog, NERI economist Ciarán Nugent looks at the effect of the Covid-19 crisis on the younger generations in Ireland. The latest figures, released on Monday are extremely worrying. More than twice the amount of employees that have been kept on through the wage subsidy scheme (283,000)...
Monitoring the crisis in the Northern Ireland labour market
In our latest blog, NERI Co-director Paul Mac Flynn looks at the latest labour market statistics for Northern Ireland that were released this morning. The latest labour market statistics for Northern Ireland were released this morning. While these figures do describe the situation in the three...
What type of economy do we want after the crisis?
In our latest blog, NERI Co-director Dr Tom McDonnell looks at the Irish economy after the Covid-19 crisis. The Covid-19 crisis is a major and transformative shock to the global economy that will have profound and long-lasting social, economic and political implications. The great lockdown has...
COVID-19: Policymakers should focus on decent work and a Green New Deal in recovery
We should start talking about a 'high-road' and green development strategy for the recovery. Assessing the likely economic impact of 12 weeks of coronavirus lockdown in their quarterly commentary at the end of March, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) suggested unemployment could...
Known unknowns - The Economic Impact of Coronavirus in Northern Ireland
In this week's blog, NERI Co-director Paul Mac Flynn looks at the impact of Coronavirus in Northern Ireland. As the lockdown of Northern Ireland enters into its third week, the impact of these measures on our economy is, as of now, largely unknown. This may seem bizarre under the current...