Colm Farrell | Public Policy, Public Expenditure & GNP

HSE Agency Costs Are 50% Over Budget In 2016
— 5 Oct 2016

Agency costs in the first 7 months of 2016 (Jan – July) have increased by €4.6m (+2.4%) on the same period in 2015.
Continue Reading ...
Electricity Costs And Renewables
— 21 Sep 2016

The Public Service Obligation (PSO) levy will increase by 23% to €401m from 1 October 2016.
Continue Reading ...
Local Property Tax – 2017
— 15 Sep 2016

11 local authorities reduced the basic rate of Local Property Tax (LPT) for 2016, at a cost of over €36m. A similar reduction in 2017 would cost €36.8m.
Continue Reading ...
Budget 2017 & The ‘Old Reliables’
— 7 Sep 2016

There is scope to increase the excise duty on diesel in Budget 2017 to yield €244m in a full year.
Continue Reading ...
Youth Unemployment
— 1 Sep 2016

One in five young people, aged 20-24 years, were ‘Not in Employment, Education or Training’ (NEET) in 2015.
Continue Reading ...
Environmental And Income Taxes
— 24 Aug 2016

The share of taxes on pollution and resources in Ireland is one third of the EU average. There may be scope to address this by decreasing direct taxes on labour and increasing taxes on pollution.
Continue Reading ...
The Carbon Tax – 7 Years On
— 14 Jul 2016

The carbon tax has collected over €2 billion in revenue since it was introduced in Budget 2010. There is scope to increase this and use the money to reduce other taxes.
Continue Reading ...
Trends in Irish Health Spending
— 29 Jun 2016

€19.1bn or 11.7% of Gross National Income (GNI) was spent on Health in 2014. What are the trends?
Continue Reading ...
Public Finances 1916
— 23 Mar 2016

Twenty days prior to the Easter Rising, the Chancellor of the Exchequer in London, Mr. Reginald McKenna, presented his Budget for 1916-17. The state of the public finances in Ireland in 1916 is outlined here.
Continue Reading ...
Rental Costs Return to Peak Levels in Dublin *
— 16 Mar 2016

Rents in Dublin have now exceeded the levels reached at the height of the property boom in Q4 2007 by 0.4%. Outside Dublin rents are still 14.5% off peak.
Continue Reading ...
Residential Property Prices 2007 – 2016
— 9 Mar 2016

Central Bank restrictions on mortgage lending have moderated the rate of increase in house prices which are still substantially below the unsustainable peak levels reached in 2007
Continue Reading ...