News

Ireland’s emissions down 1.9% but reduction targets missed

Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions decreased in 2022 compared with the previous year, according to a new report from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Total emissions were 1.9% lower due to decreases in the residential, agricultural and energy sectors. However, emissions from the transport sector increased by 6%. The EPA’s latest assessment of annual greenhouse gas […]

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Disadvantaged areas hit harder by unemployment during pandemic – ESRI

A new report from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) has found that people living in disadvantaged areas experienced greater disruption to their employment during the Covid-19 pandemic. The study, entitled ‘Pandemic Unemployment and Social Disadvantage in Ireland’, was carried out in collaboration with Pobal. Pobal is an organisation that administers and manages Government […]

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Used cars 79% more expensive than pre-pandemic

Asking prices for used cars are 79% higher than they were pre-pandemic, but the rate at which prices are rising is slowing. New figures from listings website DoneDeal show the annual rate of inflation slowed to 10.7% in the second quarter of this year. That is down from 26.6% the same time last year, and […]

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Infrastructure deficit is leading to lost opportunities, Ibec warns

Ibec has warned that Ireland is currently losing out on business opportunities because of constraints in capacity in the economy, including around housing. The employers’ organisation claims the Government must focus on creating greater economic capacity in October’s budget, through both expanding infrastructure and boosting social investment. Launching Ibec’s pre-budget submission, Executive Director of Lobbying […]

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27% of jobs at high risk from AI revolution – OECD

More than a quarter of jobs in the OECD rely on skills that could be easily automated in the coming artificial intelligence revolution, and workers fear they could lose their jobs to AI, the OECD said today. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is a 38-member bloc, spanning mostly wealthy nations but also […]

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96% of Ulster Bank and KBC Bank Ireland accounts now closed

New Central Bank figures show that just over 96% of all current accounts that were open in Ulster Bank and KBC Bank Ireland at the beginning of 2022 were either closed or inactive by the end of June this year. Ulster Bank and KBC Bank announced their intentions to leave the Irish market in 2021. […]

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New platform aimed at addressing skills gap launched

A new platform aimed at addressing skills gaps in the workforce and wider economy is being launched today. MicroCreds.ie has been developed by the Irish University Association in conjunction with a number of universities offering hundreds of short, flexible courses with university-accreditation. MicroCreds partner universities have developed courses in key skills areas including sustainability, digital […]

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New electric car sales up 65% in first half of 2023

New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the number of new electric cars licensed has increased by 65% from 8,309 in the first half of 2022 to 13,701 in the first half of 2023. The CSO said that in the first six months of this year, 25,446 of the new cars licensed were […]

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Home asking prices up 2.2% in second quarter – MyHome

Asking prices for homes across the country were 2.2% higher between April and June than they were during the same period last year, as the market began to show signs of stabilising. The MyHome.ie quarterly house price report shows that during the period, the national median price sought for a home was €325,000, an increase […]

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New home starts up 7% compared to same period last year

The three coalition leaders and Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien will unveil the latest progress report on the Government’s “Housing For All” plan. The data relates Q2, from April to June this year. It shows building started on 12,987 new homes in the first five months of 2023, up 7% when compared to the same […]

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