Brown O’Connor Communications Weekly Look Ahead – Ireland Wednesday 1 February 2023

Forward Look                                

  • Tomorrow, both houses of the Oireachtas will be addressed by Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament.

  • Ibec have published a new report warning the housing crisis is becoming a critical barrier to the continued growth and development of business investment. It has also called for property taxes to be used to cut housing developer fees, saying it has the potential to reduce the cost of a typical €400,000 new home by €30,000.

  • Fórsa has backed indefinite strike action for health and care staff in the community and voluntary sector.

  • The Cabinet Committee for Economy will meet in two weeks’ time to consider what cost of living supports will not be extended beyond February.

  • Leader of the Green Party Eamon Ryan TD has confirmed his party would be open to going into Government with Sinn Féin after the next election.

  • Children’s Minister Roderic O’Gorman TD will bring a proposal of subsidies for childcare to Cabinet this week.

  • Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien TD will introduce fines for planning bodies that miss deadlines on fast-track housing projects.

  • Fianna Fáil TDs and senators are calling on Tánaiste and party leader Micheál Martin to appoint a deputy leader to boost the party’s flagging election chances.

  • Fine Gael Deputy Chief Whip Brendan Griffin TD has confirmed that he will not be contesting the next general election.

  • Governor of the CBI Gabriel Makhlouf informed the Oireachtas Finance Committee that ECB rates are likely to increase steadily in the coming months and there is a degree of uncertainty over policy decisions beyond that.

  • Further tech job cuts have been confirmed at Workday, PayPal, HubSpot, IBM and SAP. The firms employ more than 10,000 people in Ireland between them.

  • Dr John McCartney, director of research at BNP Paribas Real Estate has office vacancy in Dublin will peak at 15% this year.

  • Pfizer has warned the government that the drug budget for 2023 is too low and could lead to delays in accessing new medicines for patients in Ireland.

  • Today, the Garda Siochana (Recording Devices) Bill 2022 reaches the second stage of consideration in the Dáil .

  • The Oil Emergency and Contingency and Transfer of Renewable Transport Fuels Functions Bill, the Central Bank (Individual Accountability Framework) Bill and the Mother and Baby Institutions Payments Scheme Bill all reach the final stage of consideration in the Dáil.

  • Tomorrow, the Joint Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment will scrutinise the Companies (Protection of Employees’ Rights in Liquidations) Bill.

 

Other Stories this week

  • Tourism Minister Catherine Martin TD says she will push the Government to retain the lower hospitality industry VAT rate.

  • The latest flash estimate from CSO shows that the economy grew by 12% last year. Goods handled by Irish ports are up by 4% in the third quarter of 2022.

  • A report published by the ESRI comparing early childhood education and care in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland have shown mothers in the Republic work longer hours while families in Northern Ireland rely on family for childcare.

  • Transparency International has reported that Ireland is perceived as one of the least corrupt countries in the world.

  • Start-up activity hit a six-year low in 2022, with the lowest number of start-ups registered since 2016.

 

Upcoming key political and business events

 

  • 2 February, The Irish Times Business Awards, Round Room, Mansion House.

  • 2 February, CIPD Ireland Employment Law Seminar, Aviva Stadium.

  • 7 February, General Council Summit, The Marker Hotel, Dublin.

  • 9 February, The National Health Summit, Croke Park, Dublin.

  • 9 February, Northwest in the City Networking Event, The Westbury, Dublin.

 

Consultations