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Cliona, a mother of three, was recently quoted €4,500 a month for childcare. She simply cannot afford it. “I don’t know who can afford €4,500 a month and pay a mortgage and have any kind of a life, and put food on the table,” she told Prime Time. “I don’t know anyone who could do…

The fuels industry has said that the Government needs to look at the overall approach to taxation on fuel because the argument that increasing fuel taxes results in decreased demand “just doesn’t follow.” The chief executive of Fuels for Ireland said despite the excise duty cut on petrol and diesel earlier this year, users are…

Ireland is among a number of countries taking part in a worldwide initiative trialling a four-day week with no loss of pay. More than 3,000 workers at 70 companies will begin a four-day week with no loss of pay in a trial lasting six months in Britain. The UK experiment is running alongside similar, smaller…

A proposed 20 cent levy on single-use coffee cups “sends the wrong message on sustainability” and the Government needs to rethink its strategy, according to a body representing the retail industry in Ireland. The measure was announced earlier this year by the Government as part of the Circular Economy Bill, which is aimed at reducing…

An increase in the supply of housing may be contributing to an easing in the pace of growth in property prices, an analysis from the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland shows. However, it warns that any easing in price growth may be offset by cost pressures in the construction sector, which will likely have a…

More than a year of rapid growth in Ireland’s services sector moderated slightly for the second successive month in May as selling prices and input costs remained close to record highs, a survey showed today. The AIB S&P Global Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 60.2 from 61.7 in March. But the index stayed above…

Minster for Finance Paschal Donohoe has said Ireland, the US and the EU are at a “high point” of economic co-operation, particularly over the issue of corporation tax. Speaking in Washington after a meeting with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Mr Donohoe said he expected the 15% Minimum Corporation Tax Rate will be made law…

New research from the Central Statistics Office shows that in March households with the lowest incomes experienced higher inflation, up to 7.6% compared to the average rate of 6.7%. Those in the highest income category had annual estimated inflation of 6.1%, the CSO added. The rate of inflation stood at 6.7% in March and rose…

Despite the ongoing war in Ukraine, it is expected that restrictions on the importation of Russian gas to the EU will not significantly impact on gas supply to Ireland. That is according to Gas Networks Ireland, which does not envisage any disruption to gas supply during the summer months. In its 2022 Summer Outlook, Gas…

The volume of construction production dropped by 2.4% in the first three months of the year, compared to the final quarter of last year, new data from the CSO shows. This is despite widespread intense activity in the sector as it attempts to catch up from delays caused by the pandemic and ramp up the…