Cliff Taylor

Cliff Taylor

Cliff Taylor is an Irish Times writer and Managing Editor

With Irish mortgage rates still well above the EU average, there is simply no excuse for borrowers not to benefit from the latest extraordinary developments in interest rates markets.
Trump’s tweets stoke up tensions and keep interest rates low

Cliff Taylor: The days of ‘money for nothing’ might not be over

In the four quarters to the first three months of this year, there were 2,500 more units built than sold nationwide, with most of this occurring in Dublin.
We are building the wrong houses, in the wrong places at the wrong prices

Cliff Taylor: Barriers remain high, including the sheer cost of erecting a home

‘No way exists which combines the kind of Brexit which the DUP has supported with the absence of a trade border on the island.’ Photograph: Paul Faith/AFP/Getty Images
Tory push to ‘just get on’ with Brexit threatens Irish Border crisis

Cliff Taylor: Britain’s next PM may be willing to run the risks to the North of a no-deal exit

We’ve never had it so good?
You have more money in your pocket but why doesn’t it feel like it?

Smart Money : As salaries increase, who is cashing in and why are many missing the feelgood factor

Maria Bailey: case has added political fuel to stories about soaring insurance costs and threats to jobs. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA
Cliff Taylor: Too much talk and too little action on insurance reform

Maria Bailey incident highlights high claims costs and expensive insurance

Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe. He has warned that he would oppose any measure which limits the legitimate use of tax competition to attract foreign investment to Ireland
OECD proposal on corporate tax could undermine State’s ability to lure investment

Minimum effective tax rate on corporate profits now on the agenda

The Central Bank is warning that funding and regulatory pressures could lead to a rise in longer-term fixed rates in future
Mortgages: Why Irish borrowers will remain exposed to interest rate swings

Smart Money: In many EU countries, borrowers can fix rates cheaply for long periods

Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe’s case is that corporation tax reform should be moderate, rather than dramatic. Photograph: Alan Betson
Donohoe bows to the inevitable on Irish tax policy

Minister faces task of weaning exchequer off drug of corporate tax revenue

British prime minister Theresa May leaves after delivering a statement in London on Friday. Photograph: Toby Melville/Reuters
Theresa May’s exit creates headache for Ireland’s economic planning

Cliff Taylor: Extended Brexit logjam looks inevitable as Conservative leadership drama plays out

The total number of people at work rose by a record 35,200 compared to the final quarter of 2018 and by 81,200 since the same time last year.
The economy and full employment: are we there yet?

Smart Money : Employers are now shouting loudly about skills shortages, pressure on wages and the impact the housing crisis is hav(...)

Paris gathering: The US underlined its opposition to unilateral action on a digital sales tax. Photograph: EPA
Corporate tax reform prominent at high-level OECD meeting

Issue due to be addressed at Dublin conference on Thursday

Property prices may strongly surge again, the OECD says. Photograph: iStock
Irish property market at risk of new boom to bust cycle, OECD warns

Disorderly Brexit ‘could plunge the economy into a recession’

The whole focus in London is back inwards to the bear pit of British politics rather than outwards to what the EU might actually agree to, or even what might be in the UK’s best long-term interest. Photograph: Getty Images
Cliff Taylor: don’t bank on another extension – a no-deal Brexit is a real risk

The talks between the Conservatives and Labour have collapsed, and the focus at Westminster remains inward

Conceived during the crisis, the broadband plan was designed to minimise the up-front cost. Whether that is now the best option to deliver long-term value for money is the question.
Broadband: what you are not being told about the €3bn plan

Smart Money: What we aren’t we being told – and why?

Share prices in the US and China – and internationally – have fallen sharply due to fears that the deepening trade war will hit global growth. Photograph: Getty
US-China trade war: What the hell has just happened?

Q&A: China’s retaliatory tariffs on US goods is the most serious turn in the dispute so far

British prime minister Theresa May during a visit to the Bombardier plant in Belfast last year. Look at the market for aircraft parts and maintenance and you realise, yet again, the nonsense surrounding the free-trade delusions of the Brexiteers. Photograph: Reuters
Cliff Taylor: Bombardier destroys bluster of Brexiteers

Fantasy world meets reality of a UK industry deeply embedded in EU economy

OECD tax plan will be a really big deal for Ireland

Smart Money: Changes to tax regime could make it more difficult to attract foreign investment

Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe told the conference the department was concluding work to help forecast and plan the collection of corporation tax in future.
International tax reform could cost State €3bn, conference told

Loss would be incurred due to OECD reform process

While public sector pensions have been protected, those for many private sector employees have been savaged. Some kind of new balance is needed. Photograph: Getty Images
Cliff Taylor: the notion of ‘pensions parity’ in the public service is irresponsible

It is nonsense that all future public servants should benefit from a very generous pension scheme which 200,000 of its members alr(...)

ASTI delegates during the annual convention in Wexford during debates on the motions on teachers’ pay. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times
What are the facts about teachers’ pay in Ireland?

Smart Money: cost of housing is putting pressure on wages and the unions are prioritising better pensions

One area highlighted by Paddy Cosgrave was the use – or misuse – of special funds and structures , designed mainly for companies operating from the IFSC. Photograph: Bryan O’Brien
What next as Ireland’s tax deal for investors runs out of road?

Change driven by the OECD is on the way and we have to be ready

The carbon tax rate currently amounts to about 5 cent on a litre of diesel or around €2.40 on a 40kg bag of coal. Even doubling the rate, the ESRI said, would only increase diesel prices by about 7%. Photograph: Lewis Whyld/PA Wire
Ireland has to move on carbon tax – why are we still arguing about it?

Smart Money: We need to cut emissions and avoid big fines – but politicians are nervous

OECD research shows that the average net cost of childcare – counting in child benefit and other State supports – is around 28% of average earnings, compared to the EU average of 12%
Why is Ireland such an expensive place to live?

Cliff Taylor: There is more than a suspicion that the interests of landowners continue to get priority

Brexit: The uncertainty just rolls on . . . and on. Photograph: PA Wire
What does the ‘Brextension’ mean for the Irish economy?

Brexit cliff-edge avoided – for now – but uncertainty rolls on

The border crossing-point from Louth as through the southern most tip of Co Armagh. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times
Brexit: No clarity on food, animal imports from North in no-deal rules

New Government notices to importers say checks will be needed in case of no-deal

Leo Varadkar speaks to the press after a meeting with the French president on April 2nd. Photograph: Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty
Brexit: In a high-stakes game, nobody wants to take the blame for a no-deal crash

Ireland will be nervous of short extension of UK exit date and will argue for longer period

Few taxes can have been the subject of more reports and analysis than the local property tax. Photograph: Getty Images
Cliff Taylor: Anything which might upset people being cynically parked by Government

The property tax joins the carbon tax in the long grass

Photograph: iStock
How do you know if your property tax bill is going to go up?

Smart Money: LPT stays fixed for 2020. But we know where higher bills may hit in 2021.

A member of the public is silhouetted against the Houses of Parliament in London, England. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
Cliff Taylor: What do tonight’s Brexit votes mean for Ireland?

Six key points from the Irish viewpoint as the UK parliament failed to find a way forward

If the UK comes back to the table after a no deal seeking talks with the EU, a backstop-type arrangement in future will be straight back on the agenda. Illustration: Getty
Government faces tense week over Brexit border plans

Cliff Taylor: Government would support long UK extension to avoid a no-deal nightmare

The European Parliament is targeting economies that are used for aggressive tax planning by multinationals. Photograph: iStock
Is Ireland a tax haven? European Parliament says yes

Smart Money: Ireland strongly criticised for helping multinationals to cut their tax bills

A change in road markings marking the Border between the Republic and Northern Ireland, outside the town of Middletown. Photograph: Neil Hall/EPA
Why Border checks may be inevitable in a no-deal Brexit

UK’s proposals for a crash-out are not sustainable while Ireland will also face pressure

Anti-Brexit signage in the village of Jonesborough, on the border between Dundalk and Newry. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA Wire
Brexit: Irish Government’s Border strategy under pressure in no-deal scenario

Government wants no border checks, but EU will insist single market is protected

German chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Emmanuel Macron in Brussels at the end of the EU summit focused on Brexit. Photograph: Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images
Cliff Taylor: the pressure to get Brexit ‘done’ is really dangerous

Powerful forces in the EU and UK just want Brexit over with – if only it were that easy

A man with painted EU and British flags on his face is seen ahead of a EU Summit in Brussels. Photograph: Toby Melville/Reuters
Brexit: Summit happening? The key things emerging today

EU agrees to give UK more time, but key House of Commons vote still due next week

Brexit: As always, a number of outcomes are possible. Photograph: EPA
Damaging risk of no-deal Brexit just refuses to go away

Uncertainty could now last well into next week as the endgame plays out

Peter Mark hair salon on Grafton Street celebrates the reduction of the VAT rate on hairdressing to 9% in 2011.
Who paid for the increase in the 9% VAT rate? You did

Smart Money: The rise fed through to prices immediately – and so would Brexit tariffs

Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said that ‘given the concerns of our citizens I accept that we will have to make changes globally’. Photograph: Chris Ratcliffe/ Bloomberg
On tax we are the undisputed leaders of the EU awkward squad

Cliff Taylor: New move changing how big companies are taxed raises serious questions for Ireland

More than half of the Republic’s €1.4 billion beef exports go to the UK, and dairy would face tariffs too. Photograph: iStock
Republic’s food sector faces huge threat from UK no-deal tariff plan

Irish beef could be priced out of UK market, dairy would also suffer

Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, welcomes British prime minister Theresa May in Strasbourg. Photograph: Patrick Seeger/EPA
Brexit explained: What has just happened and what happens next?

Cliff Taylor on the Strasbourg deal, the Cox advice, the vote, and what happens next

A pro-EU demonstrator outside of the Houses of Parliament in London. Photograph: Tolga AKMEN/AFP/Getty Images
Here is your guide to Brexit, if you haven’t been paying attention so far

With under three weeks until Brexit Day, anything could happen

Britain’s attorney general Geoffrey Cox. He is a lawyer sent to do a politician’s work to ensure the UK is not “trapped in the backstop”. Photograph: Reuters/Peter Nicholls
Toxic language is defining the attempt to reach a Brexit deal

The UK worries about being “trapped” in a backstop – but can’t present an alternative

Would a change to the rules which allows Irish banks to write-off tax against losses be shooting Irish taxpayers in the foot?
Irish banks are back in profit – so why are they still not paying tax?

Smart Money: Banks and insurers will not pay up to €12bn in tax due on profits unless rules are changed

The big tech firms continue to drive demand for new office space, and the Dublin crane count remains high. In fact, while the whole economy would take a hit from a no-deal Brexit, Dublin would have a lot of insulation. It is rural Ireland which stands exposed
Key parts of our economy have stalled in the face of Brexit uncertainty

Cliff Taylor: Whatever happens we have seen the best of the bounce-back boom

Average weekly earnings were €761.65 in the fourth quarter of last year
Wages are finally on the rise, but who are the big winners?

The Smart Money: Irish wage growth is storming ahead - but issues remain

Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg: ‘If it’s being delayed as a plot to stop Brexit altogether ... it would undermine our democracy.’ Photograph: Leon Neal/Getty Images
Tory hardliners warn that extension could be plot to stop Brexit

Mays says if MPs reject deal, they can vote on no deal and on extending article 50

In a document examining the impact on business of a no-deal exit, the UK government says that the cumulative impact from a no-deal on the Northern Ireland economy would be “more severe” in the North than elsewhere in the UK. Photograph: iStock
UK to publish plans for cross-Border trade after no-deal Brexit

UK government committed ‘to avoiding a hard Border’ in any scenario

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Simon Coveney outlining plans for a no-deal Brexit at Government Buildings. Photograph: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie
No-deal Brexit throws up really big calls on jobs, the rural economy and peace

Cliff Taylor: Government would need to embark on a major programme of assistance for the companies affected

Les Reilly, the owner of Reilly’s Daybreak Store in the Naul, north county Dublin celebrates pictured with staff and customers after selling the winning €175 million EuroMillions ticket as David Woods (left) area rep with the National Lottery sprays the champagne. Photograph: Mac Innes Photography
Here is why it is not completely crazy to buy a lotto ticket

Smart Money: why do lotto players ignore the odds? Economics has a surprising answer

The Irish beef market is particularly exposed to a no-deal Brexit, but the dairy industry could also face massive upheaval. Photograph: iStock
Why is the Irish food sector so exposed to a no-deal Brexit?

Reliance on UK market combined with tariffs and bureaucracy represent nightmare scenario

British prime minister Theresa May, EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier and European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker in Brussels. Photograph: Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP
Cliff Taylor: Brexit crisis is about a lot more than the backstop

Euro-zone slowdown makes a Brexit extension more likely to be accepted by Europe

INMO members on the picket line outside St. James’s Hospital in Dublin. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill
Public sector pay restoration: your spending power is not back to 2008

Smart Money: public pay bill under pressure and looks set to remain that way

“The nurses are wrong to link their pay issues with the national children’s hospital overrun – one is a massive one-off, the other an ongoing bill.” Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire
Cliff Taylor: Children’s hospital cost overrun a symptom of deeper ailment

The health system swallows money without delivering any necessary improvements

The ballooning cost of the children’s hospital has placed the Government in a near impossible position of continuing in the face of huge extra cost, retendering or abandoning the project.
Children's hospital: A spectacular example of how things can go wrong

Smart Money: All the classic project overrun mistakes are evident in this debacle

Win any (pub) argument with our Brexicon. These pro- and anti-Brexit protesters outside the British parliament have definitely read it. File photograph: Peter Nicholls/Reuters
Brexit: An idiot's guide to the United Kingdom leaving the European Union

From Bino to Remoaner, we give you the essential tools to hold a Brexit pub conversation

Anti-Brexit posters displayed in Newry on the Northern Ireland Border. Photograph: Stephen Collins/Collins Photos
UK looking for alternatives to Border backstop. Do they exist?

UK government establishes special group to look at alternatives to proposed backstop

The union says it has never asked for 12 per cent and disputes these figures as ‘spin’
Are Irish nurses underpaid – what are the facts?

Smart Money: There are four key economic questions behind the nurses’ strike

Trade experts say that technological solutions and advanced procedures can reduce the need for physical border controls and checks but not eliminate them. Photograph: Stoyan Nenov/Reuters
The big Brexit question: What does a hard Irish Border look like?

Cliff Taylor: Brexiteers see border issue as technical, for Ireland it is much more

Kit Malthouse, right – who gives his name to the Tories’ Malthouse compromise – and Boris Johnson in 2011. Photograph: Matthew Lloyd/Getty Images
Malthouse compromise: an idea whose time has come – and gone

Industry figures trash Tories’ reheated idea of technology plus checks away from Border

For the moment, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe will not change his spending and tax plans – for this year anyway. File photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times
Rapid and significant economic hit would follow no-deal Brexit

Failure to reach agreement would reduce growth sharply, with rural Ireland exposed

Any successful amendments will not have the force of law, but will carry heavy political weight as a signal to Downing Street and Brussels of what kind of Brexit MPs are likely to approve. Photograph: Tolga Akmen/AFP/Getty Images
The Brexit amendments: What the UK parliament is proposing

Four main strategies are being proposed - some more attractive to Ireland than others

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the Army might be needed at the Border following Brexit. Photograph: Gian Ehrenzeller/EPA
Cliff Taylor: Ireland could face choice of backstop concessions or no-deal Brexit

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar faces ultimate political call on Brexit

Markets appear to have chosen to take a positive view of the Brexit outcome based largely on the view that the House of Commons does not support a no-deal Brexit. Photograph: Bloomberg
The Brexit process is in turmoil but sterling is rising. Why?

Smart Money: Is now a good time to make a big sterling purchase or should you wait?

Close to the Border between Dundalk, Co. Louth and Newry, Co. Down. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill
Is there any way to avoid a hard Border in a no-deal Brexit?

If UK imports chlorine-washed chicken from US, what stops it entering Irish and EU markets without checks?

We are entering a chaotic couple of weeks when all kinds of prospects will be floated, and all this as the clock ticks remorselessly on. We can only hope that these discussion are based on some kind of reality because both the Conservatives and Labour have so far done all they can to duck the real choices. Photograph: Getty Images
It’s way too early to be writing off the risk of a no-deal Brexit

The UK must provide the EU with a reason to extend article 50 and delay the exit date as working out a way forward in 10 weeks loo(...)

European Central Bank president Mario Draghi
The outlook for interest rates has changed dramatically - here is what it means

Smart Money: Slowing growth outlook could prompt the ECB to delay its expected rate rise

UK prime minister Theresa May listens during a debate on a motion of no confidence. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
Brexit block: so many possible outcomes, so little time

Ten weeks left, the Commons is in chaos and the range of possibilities remains wide

If it all works out, then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will claim a political success. Photograph: Gareth Chaney Collins
Cliff Taylor: Brexit can go one of three ways for Ireland

Political stakes are high as Varadkar seeks to avoid no-deal Brexit while keeping the backstop

Workers entering the Intel facility at Leixlip, Co Dublin. The company is poised to announce a major investment in the facility. File photograph: Dave Meehan/The Irish Times
Cliff Taylor: Has the boom in Ireland got too boomy?

A legitimate question on the implications of an investment's temporary effects

A vacuum created by the lack of authority now characteristic of Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn is being filled by coalitions of MPs, who this week demonstrated that the House of Commons is committed to block a no-deal Brexit. Photograph: UK Parliament/Mark Duffy/PA Wire.
Nobody can say with confidence what way Tuesday’s Brexit vote will go

European Commission clarifications unlikely to sway minds of DUP

Intel already has planning permission for a new 90,000sq m facility adjacent to its existing site in Leixlip, Co Kildare
Intel close to major investment at Leixlip base

Preparatory work seen as prelude to increasing capacity at Co Kildare plant

Is fuel in for a hammering due to increased carbon taxes?
Carbon tax: sharp rise in fuel costs on way - but then you get your money back

Smart Money: Water charges fiasco has focused government minds

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar speaking to the media outside Government Photograph: Niall Carson/PA Wire
Stock up on those ready meals - no-deal Brexit would not be pretty

The final desperate efforts to avoid a crash-out Brexit are about to get underway.

Time to look ahead to 2019, even if you don’t want to. Photograph: Getty
The three big trends which will affect your finances this year

Smart Money: Brexit, world economy wobbles and interest rates are vital signs for 2019

Jean-Claude Juncker: the European Commission president supported the new moves on tax policy in his state of the union speech last September. Photograph: Eric Vidal/Reuters
EU Commission pushes ahead with plan to end unanimity on tax

Move would meet strong opposition from the Government and from Irish businesses

The euro is now the currency of 340 million people in 19 countries and internationally meets the key criteria of wide acceptability as a means of exchange and as a store of value. Photograph: iStock
The euro 20 years on: Ireland’s long journey to currency union

The first part of a series examines the trade-offs made in joining the single currency

“If a way is found to avoid a no-deal Brexit, then 2019 suddenly looks brighter for the economy, even with an international slowdown.”
Irish economy set for holding pattern amid Brexit uncertainty

The outlook for 2019 brings uncertainty to a new level as the world economy hits a turning point

Other exchequers jealously look at our soaring corporate revenues
Government will fight to support Apple, but Perrigo must battle alone

Cliff Taylor: Contrasting approaches to tax bills show the delicate balance Ireland must strike

The Revenue Commissioners have given a notice of assessment to Perrigo, a pharma giant with its headquarters in Dublin.
What’s the massive Perrigo tax bill all about?

Cliff Taylor answers all your questions

The tax bill relates to the sale by Elan of its interests in multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri in 2013 to Biogen for $3.25bn and also a share of future royalties
Revenue issues tax demand of over €1.6bn to pharma giant Perrigo

Claim relates to a row over the amount of tax paid on the sale of a stake in a major drug

The scene of the Roscommon eviction which has highlighted the huge debate about the issue of home repossession in Ireland.
Is Ireland’s low rate of repossession the reason mortgage rates are so high?

Smart Money: Controversy in Roscommon puts focus back on how rules work in Ireland

Britain’s prime minister Theresa May visits the UK Border Force Command Centre at Terminal 5 in London Heathrow Airport on Wednesday. Photograph: Niklas Halle’n/Reuters
The harsh consequences for Ireland of a no-deal Brexit start to come into view

The Government has taken the first steps in no-deal planning, but there is a lot still to do

The Revenue Commissioners have made plans for emergency medicines coming into the State to be fast-tracked at customs entry points after Brexit. File photograph: Jason Clarke Photography
Emergency medicines to be fast-tracked into State after Brexit

Revenue makes plans to avoid disruption to supplies after UK’s exit from the EU

The National Competitiveness Council is worried about the State’s heavy dependence on the performance of a narrow base of firms. Photograph: Reuters
Cliff Taylor: NCC delivers economic reality check amid bright Irish data

Latest competitiveness analysis is notable for its blunt conclusions

Mark FitzGerald says the Government and the Oireachtas need to act to increase housing supply.
Make houses cheaper: Government urged to reduce rate of VAT on new houses

Developments must be ‘viable for the housebuilder and affordable for the consumer’

No-deal Brexit: about 60 per cent of medicines used in the Republic of Ireland travel through or come from the United Kingdom. Photograph: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg
Drug firms get six-month Brexit exemption to safeguard supplies

HPRA waives relabelling requirements as industry steps up no-deal preparations

‘In a no-deal scenario the UK would leave the EU at the end of March, and immediately become a ‘third country’ from the EU’s viewpoint, in other words one outside its customs and regulatory regime.’
Cliff Taylor: Ireland may face very uncomfortable choices in a no-deal Brexit

Border checks would be essential in some capacity if the UK crashes out of the EU

Reunification is ultimately a political issue, of course, but economics is a big part of it.
So, how much would a united Ireland really cost?

Smart Money: Who would pay for a united Ireland economy and might other gains help pay the bill?

Britain’s prime minister Theresa May making a statement in the House of Commons in London on Monday. She told the house that a vote on the Brexit withdrawal bill will be deferred. Photograph: PRU/HO/AFP/Getty Images.
Brexit Q&A: What has Theresa May said on the Border backstop now?

Cliff Taylor: UK prime minister is to seek ‘reassurances’ on Irish border, but no-deal risk is rising

Next year may be a year of reckoning. Let’s hope part of that is not due to a potentially chaotic no-deal Brexit. Photograph: Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP/Getty
Cliff Taylor: The outlook for 2019 brings uncertainty to a new level

Trump policies and Brexit lurk as threats to Ireland while boost from global growth will weaken

Tory MP Priti Patel’s food shortage comments were criticised by EU agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan.
EU agriculture chief Phil Hogan rails against Tory MP’s food threat

Exploiting shortages for political gain will ensure ‘starvation of British people’, Hogan says

Often when markets are getting edgy about the general outlook and share valuations, a specific event such as the Huawei arrest focuses their attention. Photograph: Getty Images
Cliff Taylor: Market turmoil exposes wider fears about global growth

Irish market now down 24% on 2018 high point

Taxing matters: We pay a relatively high amount of income tax but a low amount of social security contributions by international standards. Photograph: iStock
Do we really pay the lowest amout of tax in Europe?

Smart Money: New figures list Ireland as one of the lowest-taxed economies. But it’s not that simple...

Britain’s attorney general Geoffrey Cox reacting as the outcome of a vote on a motion to find Government ministers in contempt of parliament is passed. Photograph: Getty Images
Reality of Brexit border backstop finally dawns at Westminster

British attorney general’s view in line with Irish analysis of how withdrawal agreement would operate

Cliff Taylor: And so we find ourselves up the same old cul-de-sac, facing the impossibility of the UK having all it wants from Brexit while still avoiding a hard Irish Border.
UK politics struggles with the idea of being ‘trapped’ in the backstop

Cliff Taylor: Latest legal document highlights reality of the Irish Border backstop

Britain’s prime minister Theresa May is welcomed by Argentina’s president Mauricio Macri as she arrives for the G20 leaders summit in Buenos Aires: Brexit debate is still based on a lack of reality about what might be available. Photograph: Marcos Brindicci
Cliff Taylor: We are heading into a maze of Brexit uncertainty and risk

No one can say what happens next if Theresa May loses vote on her exit plan

A combination of Central Bank borrowing limits and cash in the market are limiting would-be buyers’ options. Photograph: iStock
We are told houses are not over-priced. So how come they are unaffordable?

Smart Money: the three key insights from the latest Central Bank report on affordability and house prices

Not pretty: Bank of England governor Mark Carney outlining the likely economic impact of a no-deal Brexit on Wednesday afternoon. Photograph: Bloomberg
Sterling crash forecast by Bank of England would crush Irish exports

Latest analysis highlights the huge cost for Ireland of a disorderly, no-deal Brexit

An anti-Brexit protester waves an European Union flag: the House of Commons looks likely to vote down the withdrawal agreement. Photograph: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Cliff Taylor: No-deal Brexit would point squarely to a hard border

Helter-skelter months ahead for Brexit with significant uncertainty and turbulence likely

Daft recently calculated that the average supply of monthly rental properties is only a third of estimated demand. File photograph: Bryan O’Brien
Is the housing crisis now starting to threaten jobs growth?

Smart Money: Employees on average wages can’t afford to buy or rent, so is the jobs boom sustainable?

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