News

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said that today is “a day of freedom” as society partially re-opens and people can travel freely anywhere on the island of Ireland. Mr Varadkar said that 12,000 businesses are set to re-open this week and 100,000 people will go back to work. He said that existing financial supports for business will […]

12,000 businesses are expected to reopen their premises this week as Covid-19 restrictions ease further starting from today. Non-essential retailers across the country can resume click and collect, shopping by appointment and outdoor services from this morning. While personal services, such as hairdressers, barbers and beauticians can also open after more than five months closed. […]

The number of social housing units in Ireland needs to double by 2030, according to think-tank Social Justice Ireland. Its recommendation is made in a submission to the Department of Housing as part of a review of housing policy. Social Justice Ireland (SJI) said the Government needs to set a target of 20% of all […]

It was undoubtedly a week of mixed emotions for prospective first-time buyers. On the one hand, a glimmer of hope came through the clouds of affordability with details announced of the government’s shared equity scheme. Elsewhere, aspirant buyers were left disappointed and angry when news emerged that the bulk of houses in at least two […]

The Minister for Finance is to bring forward proposals to Government to gradually cap the interest rates that moneylenders can charge. At present, moneylenders are allowed to charge interest rates with an Annual Percentage Rate (APR) of up to 187%. Interest rate caps on moneylending are in place in 21 EU countries, including Germany, France […]

Household net worth reached a record high of €855bn in the final quarter of last year due to an increase in deposits and savings, according to new data from the Central Bank. Household net worth rose by 2.9% or €24bn in the final three months of the year. Household savings continued to increase, up by […]

New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the Covid-19 crisis continues to have a significant impact on the labour market here in April. The CSO said that the standard measure of Monthly Unemployment stood at 5.8% in April. But it added that its Covid-19 Adjusted Measure of Unemployment indicates a jobless rate as […]

Activity in the services sector accelerated to hit a 14-month high in April as the country began a gradual loosening of Covid-19 restrictions, a survey showed today. The Government last week said it would press ahead with plans to reopen all retail stores, personal services and non-residential construction in May. Hotels, restaurants and bars will […]

Discussions on how to stop financial investment companies buying large sections of housing estates are likely to continue across Government departments today. Taoiseach Micheál Martin has pledged that the Government will immediately deal with what he termed the “unacceptable” situation where first-time buyers are being forced to compete with institutional investors for homes. The shortage […]

The Exchequer recorded a deficit of €7.6bn in April, up from €7.5bn at the same time last year. The deterioration is down to increases in current expenditure. Despite this, tax receipts in the month were 8% higher than expected, driven mainly by higher levels of income tax. Taxes overall were 20.3% or €519m higher than […]