Budget 2022 arrives with amazing news about Ireland’s fiscal position. For once it is unambiguously good news. Why not spend all those extra tax revenues on much needed infrastructure? Health and housing?
If you read much of Irish media and listen to opposition politicians, Ireland resembles a dystopian hell-hole. Others - inevitably outsiders - see the country as one of the most prosperous places on earth. One of the mysteries of the age is why the coalition allows the opposition to control the narrative.
The political economy of the budget: 'One of the most prosperous countries on earth' or 'a dystopian hell-hole'? The answer matters. A lot.