Economy – Page 7 – Slugger O'Toole

Let’s put our values into practice in how we govern, argues Naomi Long

Paul Gosling on July 16, 2021, 9:05 am

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If we are to make progress in Northern Ireland’s society, we need to reflect carefully on our core values and ensure that these are reflected in the way government works. This is the message put forward by Naomi Long – leader of the Alliance Party and justice minister – in the second of the Holywell Trust’s Forward Together podcast interviews of Northern Ireland’s political leaders. Among the points stressed by Naomi is that violence is not acceptable as a means …

The Ulster Unionist Party reflects on the future of Northern Ireland

Paul Gosling on July 9, 2021, 9:05 am

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The third series of Holywell Trust’s Forward Together podcasts has heard from experts in a range of areas – including the economy, skills, education, young people’s experience, housing – and also considered best practice elsewhere. As it moves towards a close, it puts the arguments for major change in the governance of Northern Ireland to our political leaders. In the first of this closing series of podcasts, we spoke to Steve Aiken – who at the time was still leader of the …

Gordon Lyons appointed Economy Minister…

Brian O'Neill on July 6, 2021, 3:32 pm

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Poor old Paul Frew, he was only in the job two weeks and now he is out. Gordon Lyons has been appointed to replace Paul Frew as NI economy minister, Democratic Unionist Party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has announcedhttps://t.co/W3daqI81OS — BBC News NI (@BBCNewsNI) July 6, 2021 From his profile, it seems the 35 year old Gordon Lyons has never had a job outside of politics. He was an assistant to Sammy Wilson before becoming an MLA. At this point, …

Creating a high skilled economy – it begins in school

Paul Gosling on July 2, 2021, 9:05 am

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Northern Ireland’s economy has a number of weaknesses. At the heart of these is the shortage of skills – higher levels of skills moves an economy up the value chain, leading to improved productivity and greater wealth. Too many of NI’s school leavers have lower levels of qualifications and skills than are needed for the modern economy. This reduces their prospects for obtaining well paid jobs, while some will become long-term unemployed or economically inactive. NI has the UK’s highest rate of economic inactivity. A recent report from the Pivotal …

How the NI Protocol protects the Agreement

Brendan Heading on June 26, 2021, 8:04 pm

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To the chagrin of Unionist politicians, it’s often emphasised by the four governments (UK, Ireland, EU, and US) that the Northern Ireland Protocol exists to protect the peace process and the Good Friday Agreement. For reasons which are understandable when examined in isolation, Unionism feels let down by the promise of the Agreement. I can see where they are coming from. The Agreement is based on cross community consent; the Protocol does not recognise this. British citizens are asked to …

If the UK and EU “recognise” and “deal with” the “flaws in the protocol”…

Mick Fealty on June 25, 2021, 3:29 pm

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Good spake from Newton Emerson which (like Brian Feeney’s piece on Wednesday) highlights another trapdoor in its rejectionist rhetoric around the Protocol… The cynically engineered electoral competition between Sinn Féin and the DUP ratcheted their votes up together, then down together as despairing voters deserted them in the Alliance surge, until the implosion of the DUP over Brexit suddenly left Sinn Féin polling 9 percentage points ahead. This is the “safety margin” for the nationalist electorate – the extent to …

Italy’s social co-ops – a model for Northern Ireland to copy?

Paul Gosling on June 25, 2021, 9:04 am

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Social care provision is in crisis across much of the world. How can the quality of care be maintained or improved? How can it be made available to those who need it? And how can social care be carried out in an affordable way without underpaying or exploiting its workers? These questions are being asked in many countries and regions. Italy has come up with its own answer – social co-operatives – and its model is being copied across much …

Fantasies of dominance are of no use in resolving Northern Ireland’s prisoner’s dilemma…

Mick Fealty on June 23, 2021, 10:52 am

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Say what you like about Brian Feeney, he is at least consistent. Today, he futures on the options for Jeffrey Donaldson for bringing Stormont down (ie, triggering an election by doing exactly what Sinn Féin did and refusing to appoint an FM). He has grounds for speculation largely given to him by the DUP’s own rhetoric (and the odd behaviour of the East and Mid Antrim Council in seeking to open their own negotiations with the Cabinet office over Larne port) …

Is the new found love of the great outdoors waning?

Brian O'Neill on June 20, 2021, 12:33 pm

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One of the positives of the pandemic was more people discovering the pleasure of the great outdoors. As there was nothing else to do more people went out walking in their local parks, forests and beaches. Walking in nature is great for your emotional and physical wellbeing and best of all it’s free. Out for a stroll at Shaws Bridge, it was noticeably quieter compared to a few months ago, all the more surprising considering what a lovely day it …

Getting to the nub of the NI Protocol and the deeply problematic East West market…

Peter Shirlow on June 12, 2021, 9:35 pm

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It is disheartening that an issue as important as the Protocol has fallen into the wearisome tropes of identity politics. Anger, gracelessness, and rhetoric trumping evidence-based approaches and shared solutions. Ultimately, we should all be concerned that megaphone tactics both bolster disesteem and prevent a proper dialogue about economic futures. Those from within nationalism and republicanism point out, as they smirk, that the British government and the DUP painted themselves into a corner. There is no doubt that the Protocol …

Community Wealth Building

Paul Gosling on June 11, 2021, 9:06 am

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Concentration of the retail and consumer services sectors in the hands of a limited number of multinational corporations sucks wealth out of local communities and into the hands of shareholders based elsewhere. So should the response be to build the local economy by supporting independent businesses based in those localities, while maximising the spend of public and other anchor institutions in their local communities? That is the approach adopted through ‘community wealth building’, often termed ‘the Preston model’. Preston is …

Could co-operatives inspire a better economy?

Paul Gosling on June 4, 2021, 9:05 am

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The Mondragon federation of co-operatives has been the foundation of the economy in Spain’s Basque country for decades. It was founded back in 1956 by a priest – José María Arizmendiarrieta – who believed that the best response to the hostility and neglect of the region by the fascist dictator Franco was to develop co-operatives that relied on mutual self-help and independence. Today there are 96 co-operatives which are members of the federation, employing more than 81,000 people. The federation includes manufacturing businesses, financial institutions, retailers and …

Reimagining Enniskillen…

Brian O'Neill on June 2, 2021, 8:13 am

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I am just back from a short break in sunny Fermanagh. As my main photo shows, when the sun is shining there are few places more beautiful. Fermanagh has massive potential to increase tourism, it could be a real growth industry for an area that has had its economic issues in the past. I had some thoughts I wanted to share about the main town Enniskillen. These are only my impressions as a visitor; I would appreciate input from locals. …

Why Conor Murphy’s Budget is failing our people

Soapbox on May 26, 2021, 9:54 am

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Sinéad McLaughlin is an SDLP MLA for Foyle and is the SDLP spokesperson for the economy For the last 14 years, Northern Ireland has been led by joint first ministers from Sinn Fein and the DUP. This leadership was supposed to deliver prosperity after the peace that was delivered by the leadership of John Hume and the SDLP. But instead of prosperity, the North continues to have some of the worst economic outcomes anywhere in Western Europe. My city of Derry …

The ups and downs of hospitality: massive staff shortages, high demand and 6 quid pints…

Brian O'Neill on May 14, 2021, 7:48 am

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As our bars, restaurants and hotels start to come out of cold storage they have a whole new set of challenges. The main one is a massive shortage of staff at all levels. There has always been a shortage of chefs but this has now expanded to most roles, especially at the lower end. Talking to people in the industry there seems to be a few things going on. We used a lot of immigrant labour to plug the gaps, …

Diane Dodds holds the key to getting the population fully vaccinated…

Brian O'Neill on May 11, 2021, 7:33 am

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The Northern Ireland vaccine programme has been a stunning success. We have pretty much full vaccination in the over 60s and they have been doing a great job of going down the age groups. The issue is as you get younger you start to get more vaccine hesitancy. Young people generally think they are immortal, and when you have a disease that does not seem to affect them too badly you can understand why some might be tempted to not …

Vocational skills: Northern Ireland’s core economic weakness

Paul Gosling on May 7, 2021, 9:04 am

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Never mind Bill Clinton saying, ‘it’s the economy, stupid’, the answers to Northern Ireland’s difficulties are instead perhaps Tony Blair’s mantra, ‘education, education, education’. In fact, the main way to tackle the economic problems of Northern Ireland are arguably to focus on education and skills. Seamus McGuinness, research professor at the Economic and Social Research Institute, discusses the weaknesses of Northern Ireland’s education and skills system in the latest Holywell Trust Forward Together podcast. Although ESRI is based in Dublin, Seamus …

Ten Ways Irish Unity Could Benefit the Republic of Ireland…

Steve Bradley on April 26, 2021, 12:31 pm

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The topic of Irish unity has been propelled into the mainstream of political debate to an extent that would have been inconceivable even five years ago. And it’s not just the usual Republican voices engaged either. Most of Nationalism’s moderate mainstream, plus some elements within Unionism, are also pondering the question of what form Northern Ireland’s future could or should take in a world where Brexit has happened and demography is shifting. It still remains very early days in that …

A new series of conversations on the future

Paul Gosling on April 16, 2021, 9:05 am

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Holywell Trust’s third series of Forward Together podcasts is launched today. As with the previous series, the focus is on how to make progress in Northern Ireland and heal our divided society. In these latest podcasts we consider some of the ideas that emerged from previous interviews – which were edited together into the book, ‘Lessons from the Troubles and the Unsettled Peace’. Unfortunately, recent events make these ideas even more relevant for urgent consideration. Suggestions discussed further in the …

Making Universal Basic Income a reality in Northern Ireland…

Soapbox on March 22, 2021, 11:45 am

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Universal Basic Income (UBI) has come to the forefront of mainstream political and economic debate over the last year as the coronavirus pandemic has exposed and exacerbated the economic precarity faced by so many in society. A UBI would pay every individual enough money to live on with no strings attached, regardless of their income or circumstances. It would not be means-tested or taxed and would be paid directly into each person’s bank account every month. At the height of …