Welfare Rights in Crisis in the Eurozone : Ireland

The Eurozone crisis and the austerity measures introduced in response to it have resulted in significant changes in terms of social rights (or ‘welfare rights') in Ireland. However, the overall reaction of Irish society has been less of a bang than a whimper (albeit it an audible and protracted one). This muted societal reaction is reflected in a lack of law-based challenges to the impacts of the crisis. In exploring this aspect of the Irish response to the crisis, the article provides an account of the legal protection and enjoyment of social rights prior to and following the Great Recession. In doing so, it demonstrates how historic and cotemporary factors have shaped the kinds of rights challenges taken during the crisis, and the success (or not) of such. The article concludes by considering the scope for social rights challenges in post-crisis Ireland