Although relative income poverty rates vary from year to year, the rankings of different industrialised countries according to these poverty measures tend to be rather stable. Ireland is consistently among a group of countries with relative income poverty rates considerably above the European...

This paper utilises the SWITCH model to carry out a detailed analysis of recent changes in the tax and welfare systems and to evaluate their effects in the light of policy objectives such as those set out in the National Anti-Poverty Strategy and the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. On the...

Three main goals are achieved in this study. Estimates are provided of how strongly the labour supply of Irish married couples is linked to the financial rewards from work, based on best practice techniques from the international literature. Building on these estimates, the study shows how the...

CONTENTS: GENERAL SUMMARY 1 INTRODUCTION 2 MEASURING THE IMPACT OF TAX AND WELFARE CHANGES 3 CHANGES IN POVERTY, ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT AND TAX BENEFIT POLICY 1987-1994 4 THE EFFECTIVENESS AND EFFICIENCY OF SOCIAL WELFARE 5 WORK INCENTIVES AND THE TAX WELFARE SYSTEM 1987-1994 6 A COMPARATIVE...

This presentation, by Anne Nolan and Brian Nolan, examines three key aspects of Irelands health care system. It begins by taking an overall view and benchmarks the Irish system against that in 21 other countries. In general they characterise the performance of the health care system as...

Ireland is one of the countries most severely affected by the Great Recession. National income fell by more than 10 per cent between 2007 and 2012, as a result of the bursting of a remarkable property bubble, an exceptionally severe banking crisis, and deep fiscal adjustment. This paper examines...

As economic inequality in Europe has continued to rise, it has become the subject of increasing academic attention. What are the drivers of inequality? How does it affect intergenerational economic and social mobility? At what point does inequality become a drag on economic growth or a threat to...

This paper examines the impact on inequality and poverty of the economic crisis in four European countries, namely France, Germany, the UK and Ireland, and the contribution of tax and benefit policy changes. The period examined, 2008 to 2010, was one of great economic turmoil, yet it is unclear...