Ireland ‘can’t grow out of debt burden’

Ireland will not be able to grow its way out of its current debt burden without some sort of restructuring of the bank debt, according to leading economist David Blanchflower.

“I don’t think it is possible for Ireland to grow its way out of this and it certainly isn’t without a growth strategy in the eurozone. We are now a few years into this crisis and the attitude seems to be to kick the can further down the road.”

Mr Blanchflower, a former member of the UK Monetary Policy Committee, says that Ireland is the only country among eurozone periphery states to benefit from membership of the euro. Moreover, the Irish economy can prosper in the future on the back of a low corporate tax rate and a well educated workforce, he says.