Monday Blog: Thinking aloud about goods and services in the public domain
‘Economics’ has been defined as a ‘science which studies human behaviour as a relationship between ends and scarce means which have alternative uses’ (Lionel Robbins). While I have difficulty with an understanding which regards economics as a ‘science’ (scientific methods may be used but, surely...
Comparing Wealth in Ireland and the EU
Indicator 4.4 from the NERI’s latest Quarterly Economics Facts (QEF) document examines wealth across Europe using a measure of average net financial wealth per person. This measure, calculated using the latest data from Eurostat, captures assets such as cash, bank deposits and shares but does not...
Monday Blog: The best behaved pupil?
As memories of the Troika in Ireland recede and as the narrative has been truly set we should pause and ask some hard questions. In a recent article entitle Ireland: The Best Behaved Pupil? on the Policy Network website (State of the Left) I have argued that 'the great irony of recent months is that...
NERI Seminar Dublin: Enterprise Policy and Ireland’s Economic Recovery
The latest NERI seminar took place this afternoon in the INTO Learning Centre. Seán Ó Riain discussed the place of enterprise policy in Ireland's economic recovery. Seán is a professor of sociology at the National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis . Prof. Riain's current research is on the...
NERI Seminar Dublin: Enterprise Policy and Ireland’s Economic Recovery
The latest NERI seminar took place this afternoon in the INTO Learning Centre. Seán Ó Riain discussed the place of enterprise policy in Ireland's economic recovery. Seán is a professor of sociology at the National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis . Prof. Riain's current research is on the...
Monday Blog: We ignore the environment at our peril
Environmental change has attracted growing concern over recent decades. The recent recession in most European states has diverted attention, temporarily to problems of debt, low-growth and under-utilisation of resources such as labour. Yet, the natural environment plays a huge role in shaping the...
Monday Blog: ‘a serious challenge that businesses and the Government must address’
In Northern Ireland – as in the rest of the United Kingdom – real wages have been falling since 2008. Using data from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) the UK-based GMB trade union has estimated that average earnings in Northern Ireland , when adjusted for inflation, have fallen by 12%...
Monday Blog: 2013 - a busy year for the NERI
This month brings to a close a very busy year for the newly established Nevin Economic Research Institute. The NERI has begun to contribute to a much needed and long-overdue debate on policy evidence and policy choices in key areas of relevance to the trade union movement and wider society - labour...
Monday Blog: Where to now (Post-Troika)?
A very strong narrative is gathering pace abroad and at home: There was ‘absolutely’ no alternative to ‘austerity’ in the case of Ireland once the storm broke in 2008; Ireland displayed remarkable and exceptional resilience, consensus and passivity in accepting the ‘tough’ decisions that ‘had to be...
Growth in Northern Ireland not what it seems
The latest figures for Gross Value Added in Northern Ireland were released yesterday by the Office for National Statistics. Gross Value Added is the closest measure to Gross Domestic Product we have for Northern Ireland, it is equal to Gross Domestic Product plus subsidies and minus indirect taxes...