Politicians ‘should prioritise education, R&D’

POLITICAL parties preparing pre-election policies should focus on education, research and development and communications infrastructure, if Ireland is to create a sustainable and high value-added economy, economist Jim Power says.

At the launch of the Friends First Quarterly Economic Outlook the bank’s chief economist said: “Despite the unprecedented economic prosperity that has been generated over the past decade, many people are finding many aspects of their lives quite difficult and challenging.

“Exorbitant house prices, large mortgages, an increasingly dangerous society, a significant overall tax burden, a high cost of living, poor infrastructure, and strained public services are all combining to make people question the quality of life that they now enjoy.

“Furthermore, there is a growing sense that much of the economic activity that is now being generated may be lacking in quality rather than quantity.”

Mr Power said politicians should prioritise investment in the education, R&D and IT infrastructure areas as these “are essential if Ireland is to create a sustainable and high valued-added economy alongside the construction-driven economy”.

He said economic growth should enhance the quality of life and living standards of as large a proportion of the population as possible. He is concerned political focus tends to be on the quantity of growth and employment, rather than quality.

“Many of the jobs being created in the economy are in relatively low productivity activities, and many jobs are being replaced by lower paid jobs elsewhere.

“This is likely to be one of the explanations for the relatively disappointing take from income tax, which should be higher given employment growth,” he said.