Casino capitalism and the way forward

Click here to read an article by NUIM's Proinnsias Breathnach in Irish Left Review, in which he argues that:

The crisis was not caused by trade unions, the public service or the level of public spending, which is quite low by international standards. Furthermore, a recent report by the National Competitiveness Council concluded that the productivity of the Irish public sector is favourable by international standards. A lot of commentators have seized on the current crisis to pursue old hoary agendas.

At national level, we need much more effective leadership than we have got from the present government. We need to get across-the-board agreement on what needs to be done, and a commitment to supporting the agreed recovery programme from all stakeholders and interest groups.

We need a national forum of experts (not just economists) to advise the government - reliance on just one economic advisor is just not good enough.

We need a comprehensive plan for national recovery and development with clear strategies, priorities, and targets - not the kind of piecemeal approach to reforms and savings which An Bord Snip and the Commission on Taxation represent.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Tagged with: