Michael Taft

Economic growth as social change Raising economic growth requires the government to defeat some vested interests.

New substack: politics is not about cosy debates or soundbites on silly TV shows. It’s about conflicts of interest. chrisdillow.substack.com/p/economic-g...

Falling Towards Zero Minister Peter Bourke was out recently lauding the record of job creation.  However, the Irish Times took a more nuanced approach: ‘ . . . there is a risk here of looking in the rear-view mirr…

If employment is a good indicator of economic health, we might be getting a bit under the weather. The private sector generated no new net jobs in the last year and overall job growth is falling towards zero. We need to debate how to maintain job growth: tinyurl.com/6dap783e

Falling Towards Zero Minister Peter Bourke was out recently lauding the record of job creation.  However, the Irish Times took a more nuanced approach: ‘ . . . there is a risk here of looking in the rear-view mirr…

If employment is a good indicator of economic health, we might be getting a bit under the weather. The private sector generated no new net jobs in the last year and overall job growth is falling towards zero. We need to debate how to maintain job growth. tinyurl.com/6dap783e

Solidarity to the people of Minnesota and the fantastic turnout in opposition to ICE. #ICEOUT

A most insightful piece here from @ingridrobeyns.bsky.social
Recommended reading @ciarannugent.bsky.social @michael-taft.bsky.social

Abandon Paddy’s Day Progressive parties and civil society groups should jointly campaign to force the Government to drop the annual St. Patrick Day’s visit to the White House.  There is almost nothing to gain fro…

Progressive parties and civil society groups should jointly campaign to force the Government to abandon any visit to the White House on St. Patrick’s Day. This would highlight Ireland’s support for the international rule of law: tinyurl.com/2fy9hfvz

Abandon Paddy’s Day Progressive parties and civil society groups should jointly campaign to force the Government to drop the annual St. Patrick Day’s visit to the White House.  There is almost nothing to gain fro…

Progressive parties and civil society groups should jointly campaign to force the Government to abandon any visit to the White House on St. Patrick’s Day. This would highlight Ireland’s support for the international rule of law. tinyurl.com/2fy9hfvz

This shows the function of "independent" regulation. It is not to improve the working of an industry, but to allow the government to avoid responsibility.

Amazing. Not only did the Irish Government fail to condemn the US attack on Venezuela, it didn’t even mention the US in a statement released by the Minister for Foreign Affairs. tinyurl.com/ytjw82vy

Electricity, Prices and Millionaires The Taoiseach recently criticised the demand for new electricity credits.  Addressing Sinn Fein in the Dail: “You want to add another €2 billion to it in terms of a short-term intervention [el…

Electricity credits? VAT cuts? Means-tested payments? The best way to reduce electricity costs for low/average income groups way is to provide every household with a minimum amount of free electricity. Don’t tinker with price markets. Reshape them: tinyurl.com/4v4x5zbv

Electricity, Prices and Millionaires The Taoiseach recently criticised the demand for new electricity credits.  Addressing Sinn Fein in the Dail: “You want to add another €2 billion to it in terms of a short-term intervention [el…

Electricity credits? VAT cuts? Means-tested payments? The best way to reduce electricity costs for low/average income groups way is to provide every household with a minimum amount of free electricity. Don’t tinker with price markets. Reshape them. tinyurl.com/4v4x5zbv

The Perverse Logic of the Government’s Immigration Policy The Government’s narrative is that asylum seekers are a cost that must be reduced – by making Ireland an unattractive place for those seeking international protection.  This ignores that fact …

The perverse logic of Government’s immigration policy: it points to the benefits that immigrants bring to the economy. Then it says there are too many immigrants. And if you point out this contradiction, you're accused of wanting to close down the debate! tinyurl.com/r3s9myka

The Perverse Logic of the Government’s Immigration Policy The Government’s narrative is that asylum seekers are a cost that must be reduced – by making Ireland an unattractive place for those seeking international protection.  This ignores that fact …

The perverse logic of Government’s immigration policy: it points to the benefits that immigrants bring to the economy. Then it says there are too many immigrants. And if you point out this contradiction, you're accused of wanting to close down the debate! tinyurl.com/r3s9myka

🚨 One in every 22 homes in Ireland is either vacant or derelict.

GeoDirectory Residential Buildings Report Q2 2025:

🏚️80,328* VACANT homes
🏚️19,821* DERELICT dwellings

#DerelictIreland #HousingCrisis

In my visualisation, red blocks represent some of the Derelict and Vacant Sites in Dublin City.

Interesting critical take on new housing strategy in today’s @independent.ie by john mccartney‬⁩

Cost of agricultural land rises 10% with Dublin the most expensive region Some 57,212 acres of agricultural land were sold nationally last year, which represented a decrease of 8.9% on 2023

“Cost of agricultural land rises 10% with Dublin most expensive”

Dublin median price/acre €24,125 (so €57,900 /hectare)

1 hectare can fit 35-50 new homes at site price ≈ €80,000/home

Hence windfall profits from re-zoning agricultural land to residential land www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

Some costs of remilitarization Raising military spending is economically and politically damaging

New substack: the government could pay a heavy cost for increasing military spending: chrisdillow.substack.com/p/some-costs...

The first electoral test for progressives in the Connolly Coalition will be the Galway West by-election. A voter-transfer pact is essential to maximising support and the minimum needed to show that progressives are serious about building an alternative to the current Government.

The Affordability Deficit We have an affordability deficit.  Even with low unemployment, solid job creation, relatively low inflation and reasonable economic growth, nearly half of households are finding it difficult making…

50% of households find it difficult making ends meet. Temporary measures won’t solve this. We need to promote wages and incomes, reshape market prices, and provide free public services. Affordability is one of the foundations of an alternative government: tinyurl.com/wzj3usnf

The Affordability Deficit We have an affordability deficit.  Even with low unemployment, solid job creation, relatively low inflation and reasonable economic growth, nearly half of households are finding it difficult making…

50% of households find it difficult making ends meet. Temporary measures won’t solve this. We need to promote wages and incomes, reshape market prices, and provide free public services. Affordability is one of the foundations of an alternative government. tinyurl.com/wzj3usnf

Profits and Threats in the Irish Housing Market While the VAT cut on food services was farcical, the tax cuts for property developers was insidious. It was framed as necessary measures to increase apartment construction viability.  But the …

Hospitality VAT cut was farcical. But tax cuts for property developers were insidious. Developers’ lobby told the Government – give us more subsidy or we won’t help meet your housing targets. And the Government blinked. Because it has no strategy: tinyurl.com/bdfc9kwd

Profits and Threats in the Irish Housing Market While the VAT cut on food services was farcical, the tax cuts for property developers was insidious. It was framed as necessary measures to increase apartment construction viability.  But the …

Hospitality VAT cut was farcical. Tax cuts for property developers, however, were insidious. Developers’ lobby told the Government – give us more subsidy or we won’t help meet your housing targets. And the Government blinked. Because it has no strategy: tinyurl.com/bdfc9kwd

📻 I’ll be speaking about #housing in #Budget2026 tonight on @rteradio1.bsky.social @latedebaterte.bsky.social 10-11pm #SpeirGorm

Probably the most succinct (and correct) description of Budget 2026. Note: it is not so much 'pro-business' as 'pro-business owner'. It is highly debatable whether tax cuts will boost business productivity. And also note the 'austerity' headline above.

Some Facts to Help You Survive the Budget There is always a lot of noise and numbers in the run-up to the budget.  Here are a few facts that might help you wade through this forest of assertions, assumptions and anecdotes. 1. &nb…

There is always a lot of noise and numbers in the run-up to the budget. Here are a few facts that might help you survive the tsunami of assertions and assumptions on Tuesday: spending, poverty, profits, VAT cuts, multi-national bail-outs and much more: tinyurl.com/2ze7kcxh

Lorcan Sirr: The five things Ireland must do to help fix housing Introduce a residency requirement, change the legal definition of ‘rent’ and start counting bed spaces

If James Browne wants to get ‘radical’ about housing, here are five things he must do www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2025...

Notes on the Front Commentary on Irish Political Economy by Michael Taft, researcher for SIPTU

Notes on the Front is moving. You can now find it at notesonthefront.org . Hope to see you there.

Pay rises for construction workers are solution to housing crisis, not the problem, says union Pay rises are the solution to the housing crisis and not a problem, a union has claimed.

“Pay rises for construction workers are solution to housing crisis, not the problem, says union”
www.independent.ie/irish-news/p...

The war in Ukraine has been very good for the stock prices of European arms makers. From Bloomberg:

It's so strange to me how the absolutely core question at the heart of politics - "what kind of society do we want to live in?" - is so absent from discussion, either assumed settled or reduced to meaningless generalities.