RTE, celebrity pay and hopeless governance. Bidenomics: some surprising consequences. The usual suspects tell McGrath not to cut taxes. He will ignore them. .
On the benefits of letting the economy run hot, I completely agree!
Think of what happens when inflation is low and interest rates remain low for a very long time. Wages don’t rise, what little excess income one can earn gets very little risk free growth, and the value of long dated assets are discounted at lower rates, inflating their value. That’s the houses and pensions that older generations have, and which younger generations are struggling to accumulate enough wealth to buy.
If we want a society that operates as a meritocracy with opportunities for social mobility, I agree that higher inflation and higher interest rates compared to the decade pre COVID should be welcomed. In my opinion, that arbitrary 2% target for central banks is long overdue a rethink. But admittedly there are obvious difficulties with double digit inflation.
If everything is a priority then nothing is a priority, and we end up with budgets giving one for everyone in the audience.
At a time when we are looking to build lots more houses in an at-capacity construction labour market, and in the backdrop of the Gombeens who organised the Children’s hospital lined up to manage the next infrastructure fiasco, why on earth would I have any confidence in throwing cash at big infrastructure projects?
If we were to engage in infrastructure spend I would be in favour of ramping up public sector reforms and IT efficiency spend in the civil service. Let’s get more done with the money we pump in.
On the benefits of letting the economy run hot, I completely agree!
Think of what happens when inflation is low and interest rates remain low for a very long time. Wages don’t rise, what little excess income one can earn gets very little risk free growth, and the value of long dated assets are discounted at lower rates, inflating their value. That’s the houses and pensions that older generations have, and which younger generations are struggling to accumulate enough wealth to buy.
If we want a society that operates as a meritocracy with opportunities for social mobility, I agree that higher inflation and higher interest rates compared to the decade pre COVID should be welcomed. In my opinion, that arbitrary 2% target for central banks is long overdue a rethink. But admittedly there are obvious difficulties with double digit inflation.
If everything is a priority then nothing is a priority, and we end up with budgets giving one for everyone in the audience.
At a time when we are looking to build lots more houses in an at-capacity construction labour market, and in the backdrop of the Gombeens who organised the Children’s hospital lined up to manage the next infrastructure fiasco, why on earth would I have any confidence in throwing cash at big infrastructure projects?
If we were to engage in infrastructure spend I would be in favour of ramping up public sector reforms and IT efficiency spend in the civil service. Let’s get more done with the money we pump in.