Comments on: Is Ireland the same as Greece?

By: CrLynch

CrLynch — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 10:59:05 +0000

Very sensationalist including Gross National Debt as an indicator of a county´s position…it has zero bearing on anything from an economic/ bailout point of view.

Ireland spends approximately 20 bln a year on social welfare payments, an area that has yet to receive much in the line of cuts.

People on social welfare benefit from one of the highest levels of payment in Europe. Pensioners receive a fairly decent level of payment form the government.

There is plenty of room to cut in this area.

By: 7trickpony

7trickpony — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 08:26:22 +0000

Ireland as a small open economy is always going to be vulnerable to global financial disruptions.The global financial meltdown triggered by Lehman Brothers collapse exposed serious flaws in Ireland’s economy-namely an over-reliance on tax revenue from property and excessive Government spending(100+ quangos,excessive remuneration for top civil-servants,M.P.s and academics paid a multiple of the European norm).Poor regulation and a tolerance of corruption and greed in financial circles added to the toxic mix.However the E.C.B. didn’t do a whole lot of regulating of French and German banks ,who loaned over 700 Billion Euros to the peripheral’PIG’s,
Clearly the E.C.B. which was responsible for financial regulation for the entire Euro-zone had difficuly saying Boo! to a goose.Ireland’s tiny workforce(approx 2 Million) has to shoulder the burden of the 85Billion Euro ‘bailout’.The baleful bond-holders must be appeased!

By: FBreughel1

FBreughel1 — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 07:50:55 +0000

@Lakedemon: I think it is the other way around and that the Greek people have no idea of what is going on in the world. But let me tell you this: We are all aware of the corruption,greed and laziness in Greece. Demonstrating against hard work will find very little support with modern, hard-working Europeans.
So either Greece changes its attitude and its work-ethic or we will declare you bankrupt and throw you out of the EU. Then Greece can start negotiating its financial situation with the Chinese government, like the African countries. They are communists but I can tell you they are NOT lazy and will tolerate your whining even less.
We treat you like adults and we expect you to comply and pay every single euro back. You should be very grateful of the patience we have shown. This is OUR tax money. Stop whining. Stop demonstrating. Start taking responsibility. Welcome to reality.

By: SteveP

SteveP — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 17:15:46 +0000

The growth of Ireland was boosted by hosting hundreds of
big foreign companies with low or no taxes.
Irish people by sure pay taxes,but foreign companies come and go.
Cloud taxation.

By: seattlesh

seattlesh — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 15:19:39 +0000

We are witnessing the results of so-called deficit hawks with increasing unemployment, falling wages, lower economic output,falling tax revenues and pending default. What has happened to all of the right wing politicians and economists that were heralding Ireland’s steps to cut their deficit a year and a half ago. The silence is deafening.

By: Hewson

Hewson — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 14:53:27 +0000

Of course the EU is happy that Ireland will repay its debts. Much of our sovereign debt is bank debt forced on to the shoulders of Irish taxpayers by the previous administration decimated in the February election. An act of such utter incompetence that it threatens to sink the entire economy. And who benefits by this stupid decision? The French, German and British banks who lent to Over-zealous Irish banks busy fueling an unsustainable property boom at home.

Gambling debts, in other words.

Without the bank debts Ireland could bridge its budget deficit within a few short years. But in all likelihood, without a change of direction by the blinkered mandarins in the ECB, a re-structuring of Ireland’s debt is unavoidable.

And, contrary to what Kathleen Brooks says, Ireland has become one of the most competitive markets in the Euro zone. This is confirmed by the number of new multinationals setting up ,here and the huge growth in exports even in the midst of the recession.

By: schmendric

schmendric — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:08:29 +0000

I disagree — somewhat. Ireland has taken tough but necessary steps to get its house in order. It also maintains a business friendly environment which should attract more companies to establish there. The country’s rocky road ahead is undeniable but passable.

Oh, me name is McNamara, I’m the leader of the band, a credit to old Ireland…

By: FBreughel1

FBreughel1 — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 12:49:26 +0000

I don’t know your point Mrs. Brooks. Honestly, what do you mean by referring to the $ 2 trillion external debt ? Monaco and Switzerland have the highest external debts in the world. Do you know why ? Because Monaco is known for it’s millionaires and Switzerland for it’s banking.

As for Ireland, it is a well known tax haven for IT, banking and call center corporations so naturally mother companies have a claim on their daughter companies in the country. So what are you trying to communicate here ? That it is a bad thing to be an attractive country for investors ? Then count in the UK and the Netherlands as well. But hopefully by now you might already start to comprehend that you cannot simply treat this number as a “loan” to the Irish population. Not so smart.

Anyhow, perhaps you would like to refer to Ireland’s public debt level to GDP which is at 93 %. High, but that we know and it would be great to see some further cuts in government spending.

By: Pete_Murphy

Pete_Murphy — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 11:59:18 +0000

Two comments:

First, regarding the following: “… the IMF … the world’s lender of last resort …”

Let’s not forget that the IMF is funded, in large part, by the U.S. The debt-burdened U.S. is further burdened by the deficit spending of Europe.

Secondly, regarding: “Its population are considered to be fairly reliable taxpayers and although competitiveness is definitely a problem …” A big part of Ireland’s problem is the free ride they’ve provided to attract foreign investors, which has lead to Ireland being, by far, America’s biggest trade deficit (when expressed in per capita terms) – 25 times larger than our deficit with China. Nearly 15% of all of Ireland’s income is derived from its trade surplus with the U.S.

In the end, American workers and taxpayers are footing the bill for Ireland, through the trade deficit and through direct support for the IMF. If America wants to solve its debt problems, its trade policy is the place to start.

By: Lakedemon

Lakedemon — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 11:39:27 +0000

Greetings from Athens Greece.
First of all I would like to say to whoever is reading my post,that the media all over the globe don’t really understand what is going on in Greece.
Greece for decades had corrupt politicians that were stealing money and had partners in EU.The politicians in EU and especially the banking system are corrupt and don’t care about people.This is all an economic twisted play to make as all economic slaves.The are boring money to Greece Ireland Portugal with a high interest so they are making money.The people in Spain and in Greece has woke up.We are on the streets demonstrating for 9 days and we will continue doing that till all the thieves go in prison.Something else that you might not know is that the constitution in Greece says,that if the country has to borrow money,the parliament must agree by the 3/5 to do that.So right now what they are doing is illegal and against the constitution.This is a treason and they will all face justice.I would like reuters to have a look of what is trully going on here and inform the public about it.On Sunday people of EU will demonstrate against the banking system and the economic path that EU has planned for us all.In all the major cities of EU people will gather and the media don’t even refer to that.Please make all of these known to the public and get out and scream for democracy.
with regards
Lakedemon