Sovereignty can be a challenging concept. Between absolute and shared, between pure and diluted, the challenge of striking and sustaining a stable balance can be difficult.
Land value taxes are the dream of every urban economist. But they're too unpopular to enact. The zoned land tax is a small step in their direction.
Low corporation tax built Ireland's FDI machine. But our other capital taxes are among the OECD's highest. Why not run the same play again instead of tweaking with EIIS?
The admirable fiscal prudence should not shield the lack of blue sky thinking in Budget 2022. The key now will be to ensure that the growth in spending is matched by an improvement in services.
There are financial and efficiency gains to be realized in nearly every facet of our world in which we can improve and optimize. So why has it taken so long for VCs to think about optimizing ourselves? And should we be worried?
Of the many transport situations where driving a car makes little sense, business trips are the most obvious. The tax treatment of expenses claims offers one of the many avenues needed to tackle the disproportionate cost of the drive-everywhere mindset.
From incentives for remote workers to a credit for payroll taxes, there are a host of practical ways Budget 2022 can help businesses. But with just €500m allocated for tax relief, we are unlikely to see too much movement.
I don’t expect Budget 2022 to deliver a step change for start-ups and scale-ups. But the government could make a real difference if it enhanced incentives for investors and fixed the broken share option scheme.
The GAA provides a sense in Northern Ireland of being part of an all-ireland structure which, since Brexit, matters more than ever.
The Cobblestone is a special place, but be careful – the impulse to conserve things is what makes Ireland unaffordable.
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