Monday Blog: The “Land of Ireland for the People of Ireland?”
First, there was a bonanza for land-owners in or near cities in the 1960s. Then there was the Kenny Report in 1973 (Kenny was a High Court judge who recommended pegging development land prices at 25% above agricultural land value – the recommendation has been ignored ever since). After that nothing...
The productivity problem - We need to invest
For most economists the sources of productivity, innovation and technological progress are almost co-extensive with the central question of economics - what is the source of the wealth of nations? Unfortunately productivity growth has been on a generally downward in the advanced economies for close...
Monday Blog: Rebooting and rethinking manufacturing
Time was when a patch sown on to the elbow was not a fashion statement but a timely and thrifty measure to prolong the use of a jacket or jumper. ‘Circular economy’ might be set to become the new buzzword but it is not a new idea. The discipline of economics (I much prefer the more honest descriptor...
Outlook for the Irish Economy: Trends, Projections and Storm Clouds
Trends In recent years Ireland’s headline national accounts have become increasingly distorted by multinational activity. Indeed the distortion is now so pronounced that it has become difficult to interpret Ireland’s economic performance and cyclical position using aggregate indicators. Even so, it...
Monday Blog: Imagining Ireland in 2037
What will Ireland look like on Friday 13th March 2037? Nothing like what we thought it might look like today, Monday 13th March 1997. Smartphones, the Celtic Tiger, Depression, Recovery, Trump, Brexit, gay marriage, talk of a united Ireland, an Oscars mix-up, etc. Rather, then speculate on the next...
Presentation slides to Retired Workers Committee: The economic and social contribution of older people
External event contribution Dr Lisa Wilson, NERI - presentation for the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, Retired Workers Seminar North/South held in ICTU Belfast office on 23rd and 24th Feburary, 2017. The presentation was on 'The economic and social contribution of oder people'.
Monday Blog: Housing statistics - some challenges
A famous 19th century Irish mathematician and engineer, Lord Kelvin, famously once said: “ I often say that when you can measure what you are speaking about, and express it in numbers, you know something about it; but when you cannot measure it, when you cannot express it in numbers, your knowledge...
Monday Blog: The Irish economic model assessed (#1)
On this site I have made references on many occasions to the unique ‘Irish economic model’. By ‘Irish economic model’ I mean those features of an economic and social model that place the Republic of Ireland in a somewhat unique place internationally. In this week’s Monday Blog, I focus on some...
NERI Seminar Dublin: Innovative Competence, How does ROI fare & does it matter?
Slides from NERI Seminar on Innovative Competence, How does the Republic of Ireland fare and does it matter? presented by Dr Tom McDonnell, NERI on 25 January, 2017
Innovation Inputs, How does the Republic of Ireland Compare?
The Republic of Ireland’s industrial and enterprise strategies will have to evolve in the future to adjust to changing political, economic and technological realities. One constructive step that the Irish government can take to future proof its economy is to renew its focus on innovation policy with...