29 July 1999 Edition
Still 2:1 unemployment imbalance
New labour market figures released in the Six Counties reaffirm the employment discrimination against nationalists highlighted by An Phoblacht last week. The figures, based on the 1997 Labour Force Survey, found that Catholics are still nearly twice as likely to be unemployed as Protestants.
62% of the total numbers of unemployed are Catholics, while only 38% of unemployed are Protestants. This imbalance is all the greater when you consider that Protestants still make up the greater part of the Six-County population.
Ban the DIRT directors
This morning, Thursday 29 July, the Leinster House Committee on Public Accounts is to begin hearings into the DIRT tax scandal. Last week, a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General showed wide scale tax avoidance perpetrated by 37 Irish banks. This tax evasion, which has left arrears of at least £200 million, was deliberately ignored by the Revenue Commissioners and the Central Bank.
The chances of any of the guilty parties being imprisoned is nonexistent but one sanction does remain. That is the barring of any directors to these banks in the period when the tax fraud was carried out from holding any future directorships. Many of these directors have enjoyed substantial perks in wages and other bonuses.
Directors of other companies that have tax liabilities are often barred from holding directorships. So why is the same rule not applied to the banking elite?
70% rise in house prices
Most Irish workers have over the past three years won total wage increases of under 10%. Further reductions in tax rates have also made marginal improvements in take home pay.
It all sounds very good until you take account of the change in house prices over the same time period. In 1996 the average cost of a home in the 26 Counties was £60,855, according to figures published last week by Irish Permanent and the ESRI.
In 1999, the average price of a house in the 26 Counties has risen to £105,061. In Dublin, the average price of a house has risen to £130,282 nearly double the price in 1996.
This week Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats begin discussions on what they want from the coming new round of partnership wage negotiations. A positive first step to these discussions would be the recognition that most Irish workers need affordable quality housing to own or to rent.
This basic economic right is not being met and any new round of employer-union negotiations that does not tackle this crisis effectively will be a worthless exercise.
62% of the total numbers of unemployed are Catholics, while only 38% of unemployed are Protestants. This imbalance is all the greater when you consider that Protestants still make up the greater part of the Six-County population.
Ban the DIRT directors
This morning, Thursday 29 July, the Leinster House Committee on Public Accounts is to begin hearings into the DIRT tax scandal. Last week, a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General showed wide scale tax avoidance perpetrated by 37 Irish banks. This tax evasion, which has left arrears of at least £200 million, was deliberately ignored by the Revenue Commissioners and the Central Bank.
The chances of any of the guilty parties being imprisoned is nonexistent but one sanction does remain. That is the barring of any directors to these banks in the period when the tax fraud was carried out from holding any future directorships. Many of these directors have enjoyed substantial perks in wages and other bonuses.
Directors of other companies that have tax liabilities are often barred from holding directorships. So why is the same rule not applied to the banking elite?
70% rise in house prices
Most Irish workers have over the past three years won total wage increases of under 10%. Further reductions in tax rates have also made marginal improvements in take home pay.
It all sounds very good until you take account of the change in house prices over the same time period. In 1996 the average cost of a home in the 26 Counties was £60,855, according to figures published last week by Irish Permanent and the ESRI.
In 1999, the average price of a house in the 26 Counties has risen to £105,061. In Dublin, the average price of a house has risen to £130,282 nearly double the price in 1996.
This week Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats begin discussions on what they want from the coming new round of partnership wage negotiations. A positive first step to these discussions would be the recognition that most Irish workers need affordable quality housing to own or to rent.
This basic economic right is not being met and any new round of employer-union negotiations that does not tackle this crisis effectively will be a worthless exercise.