Striving for net zero will cost less than we thought, but it will not be plain sailing
The incoming government must do more to encourage EV ownership as sales have slumped
Higher pay for public service staff to afford homes should be time limited and phased out
Rapid growth in highly paid multinational jobs has put significant upward pressure on housing prices
How can money and time be saved in the cost of tendering for public contracts?
Changing the spec of any construction project can be an expensive business - just look at the National Children’s Hospital or the Leinster House bike shed
Ireland has won the corporation tax game for now, but will that last?
The upcoming Trump presidency presents a huge challenge to maintaining the State’s tax receipts
The power market should reflect that renewable energy is cheaper
Ireland desperately needs to build out its grid to accommodate more use of wind energy
Next government must get real about the promises it made during the campaign
The programme for government should explicitly state that all commitments are contingent on the wider economic picture, which looks volatile
How could the EU respond if Trump imposes tariffs?
While Ireland appears vulnerable, particularly in relation to pharmaceuticals, aircraft would be an obvious way for the EU to hit back
Climate change is pushed off the agenda in election campaign
Most parties have little to say on a topic that is likely to be one of the biggest issues for the next government
Parties’ general election manifestos struggle to make the figures add up
Missing aggregate cost figures for all of any political party’s promises would highlight the gap between ambition and prudence
No substitute for experience when it comes to delivering infrastructure
Any Department of Infrastructure will need a long time to get up to speed as happened when department responsibility for climate was switched
With an election imminent, it is important party policies and manifestos are objectively costed and tested
Independent assessment of political proposals is an important safeguard for the voting public
Trump’s trade policies would make Mexico far better off at the expense of US workers
In a US trade war, the EU could be tempted to take retaliatory action against American corporate tax in Ireland
Employees love the flexibility of hybrid working but it could prove costly in the long run
Real collaboration and innovation occurs face to face, with a freer flow of ideas and discussion than virtual encounters
In Ireland, we seem to have lost the capacity to build at scale
Post-pandemic, there is no shortage of cash in the banks or the exchequer to help finance the investment Ireland badly needs
We could be having too much of an economic good thing
‘Dutch disease’ is when a bonanza turns into an inflation shock. State could yet suffer a mild bout of it