Households will, on average, be 2 per cent worse off next year as a result of measures in Budget 2026, assuming wages grow as expected, the Economic & Social Research Institute (ESRI) says, with low-income households faring worse.
The think tank, Dominic Coyle reports, said the Government’s decision not to repeat one-off cost-of-living measures was responsible for much of the adverse effect of the budget on household income.
Continuing with the budget fallout, the Coalition’s decision to wait until next July to apply a VAT cut for the hospitality sector was taken, in part, because of the “significant cost” of the policy to the exchequer, the Department of Finance has said, amid sharp criticism from the industry.
In Agenda, meanwhile, Cliff Taylor dives into the three big questions hanging over Budget 2026: Can it accelerate the building of apartments, what will it mean for the amount of income tax you pay, and is it a prudent budget?
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State Street, one of the biggest financial services employers in the State, is pairing up software engineers with what chairman and chief executive Ron O’Hanley describes as “AI buddies”. The company is betting big on artificial intelligence, he tells Joe Brennan in our interview of the week, as the group looks to think differently about how the technology can be used.
The National Ploughing Championships, the Ryder Cup, and Electric Picnic all contributed to a 10 per cent increase in spending last month compared with the same period last year, according to data from AIB.
Barry O’Halloran has the story that most Aer Lingus ground crews have rejected the airline’s offer of a 4 per cent pay rise in a vote completed on Thursday. Members of trade union Siptu at the airline have been voting on for the past two weeks on the offer, which the company has tied to extra productivity, in separate ballots across the country.
Despite its early years being dogged by the pandemic and public health restrictions, Center Parcs Ireland has gone from strength to strength in recent times. Hugh Dooley reports that the company behind the Longford holiday resort hit a record €101 million in turnover over 53 weeks ending in April last, beating out the €96.7 million it made in 2024.
Colin Gleeson reports that the latest “spend trend” from the bank shows the biggest selling days of the year for tourism and exhibits occurred on September 16th and 17th as people flocked to Screggan, Co Offaly, for the ploughing.
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