‘Serious threat’ to Ireland’s prosperity

Irish living standards and prosperity face “a serious and imminent threat” if Ireland fails to rein in costs, the National Competitiveness Council warns.

The council also joins with the IMF and the EU in urging the Government from taking steps that would narrow the tax base, saying that high levels of economic growth are “masking” underlying threats of rising costs.

Set up 20 years ago to advise on ways to sustain economic expansion, the council said the Government should, however, shape a taxation system that rewards “employment, enterprise, investment, and innovation”. It also wants to prioritise projects to ease bottlenecks in national infrastructure.