If you’re trying to buy a home, a report this week from estate agent Sherry FitzGerald on house prices and available stock won’t have lifted your mood.

The supply of second-hand properties for sale in Ireland has fallen by almost a third since the pandemic, according to Sherry Fitz figures.

And it found that annual house price inflation was running at 5.5 per cent for the 12 months to the end of June, up from 3.4 per cent at the same time last year.

Figures from the CSO last week told a similar story.

On this episode of Inside Business, host Ciarán Hancock picks through the latest data points with Marian Finnegan, managing director of Sherry Fitzgerald, and Eoin Burke Kennedy, economics correspondent with The Irish Times.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The high price of electric cars has long been seen as a barrier for those looking to switch from the traditional combustion-engine car to an EV, but that is now changing with many car makers slashing their prices. But what is driving prices down and what impact will it have on the second-hand EV market here? Irish Times writer specialising in motoring Neil Briscoe explains.

And what of the broader picture for EV usage here, how do we compare to other countries and is charging infrastructure keeping pace? Brian Caulfield, Professor in Transportation & Head of Department at Trinity College Dublin gives his thoughts.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound. This episode was originally published in February 2024.

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The Covid-19 pandemic that hit in March 2020 hammered the Irish hospitality and retail sectors.

One company that was directly in the firing line was Moriarty’s a family run craft shop and restaurant in the Gap of Dunloe in Kerry that was largely dependent on American visitors for its business.

The company survived this near-death experience by becoming one of the first SMEs in Ireland to use a new small company rescue process called Scarp, introduced by the Government at the end of 2021.

Having wiped out substantial debts, Moriarty’s is once again thriving, and looking to expand its business beyond the Gap of Dunloe.

Denis Pio Moriarty is a son of the founders and runs the business with other family members. He joined host Ciarán Hancock in studio to tell his company’s story of surviving the pandemic.

He began by recalling Moriarty’s early days, from its opening in 1964 and its growth story up to when the pandemic hit in early 2020.

Produced by John Casey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode of Inside Business we look at the €725 million funding plan the Government has agreed to provide to RTÉ over the next three years. Laura Slattery of The Irish Times sat down with RTÉ chief Kevin Bakhurst last week and not surprisingly he was “really pleased” with the settlement. Laura joined host Ciarán Hancock in studio to explain how the settlement provides RTÉ with financial stability over the next three years.

Also on the podcast this week, Revolut recently announced its intention to offer mortgages in the Irish market. But there has also been a growing number of complaints about the digital bank from customers who have had their accounts scammed and have run into a brick wall with Revolut in terms of getting the issue resolved.

Brendan Burgess is a consumer advocate and runs the website Askaboutmoney.com, we began by asking him for his view on whether Revolut offering home loans would shake up an Irish mortgage market dominated by AIB and Bank of Ireland.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week industrial peace broke out at Aer Lingus when pilots at the airline voted in favour of a pay proposal brokered by the Labour Court, ending weeks of industrial action that disrupted about 86,000 passengers of Aer Lingus. Ryanair also warned of weaker trading and profitability as passengers put a limit on how much they are prepared to pay for a flight.

Barry O’Halloran of The Irish Times and Davy equity analyst Stephen Furlong joined host Ciarán Hancock in studio to discuss those and other developments in the aviation sector this week.

In the second part of this episode, Eoin Burke Kennedy, economics correspondent of The Irish Times, discusses the tax strategy papers released by the Department of Finance on Tuesday, which will help inform policy in October’s budget. They include proposals to introduce congestion charging for motorists and to require people to report inheritances and gifts to Revenue if it exceeds €3000 in value.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation, which represents the broad hospitality sector, made its pre-budget submission to Government. Among the asks, were a return to the 9 per cent VAT rate, more cash from the State to promote the industry and a lifting of the 32m passenger cap at Dublin Airport, the country’s main gateway for visitors.

So, how is the hospitality sector in Ireland doing given it is peak tourism season and Covid is a distant memory?

Host Ciarán Hancock is joined by an expert panel, with Eoghan O’Mara Walsh, chief executive of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation, Paul Donnellan, Head Chef and Owner of Gemelle’s Restaurant in Galway, and Paul Gallagher, General Manager of Buswells Hotel in Dublin.

Paul Donnellan explains why half of his restaurant in Galway city is currently mothballed, while Paul Gallagher outlines the financial hit to Buswells Hotel from recent Aer Lingus flight cancellations and the empty rooms it was left with on the first night of Taylor Swift concerts in Dublin at the end of June. But this episode begins with Eoghan O’Mara Walsh explaining why the industry was once again asking Government to restore the 9 per cent VAT rate.

Produced by John Casey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On Tuesday, the Government published its Summer Economic Statement, which provides a framework for tax and spending in October’s budget. We discovered that the budget will be framed around a massive tax and spending package of €8.3 billion. Strip out Covid and cost of living years, and that would make it one of the most generous in the history of the State.

In turn, this has fuelled speculation of an early general election in November.

On this week’s episode of Inside Business, Eoin Burke-Kennedy and Cliff Taylor join Ciarán Hancock to go through the headline numbers in the statement and how the €8.3 billion breaks down.

In the second half, we hear from Martin Muller, professor of geography and sustainability at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland. He’s been crunching the numbers on the costs and payback for host cities for big events such as the Olympic Games, and following many years of preparation, billions spent on facilities and new infrastructure and the promise of an economic bounty, is Paris set to benefit from playing host to this year’s games?

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we are focusing on mortgages and housing supply. Host Ciarán Hancock is joined by an expert panel comprising Irish Times finance correspondent Joe Brennan, economics correspondent Eoin Burke-Kennedy and Home & Design Editor Fiona Reddan.

Fiona Reddan profiles the typical Irish house buyer in the market. How old are they? Where are they buying? What kind of salary are they earning and how big a part does the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ play?

Eoin Burke-Kennedy explains why there are so many differing views in the market as to how many houses we need to build to meet annual demand. Will 50,000 suffice, or should it be as high as 85,000?

And Joe Brennan discusses plans by digital bank Revolut to offer mortgages in the Irish market from next year. A move that should make AIB and Bank of Ireland sit up and take notice.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode of Inside Business we start with Jack Chambers’ appointment as the new Minister for Finance following Michael McGrath’s nomination by the Government as Ireland’s next European Commissioner.

So, who is Jack Chambers and why has he been given such a plum role in Cabinet? Irish Times Political Editor, Pat Leahy, charts the rise and rise of someone many are tipping as Micheál Martin's heir apparent to lead Fianna Fáil. 

Also on the podcast: aggression against workers in the Irish retail sector has been on the rise, prompting employers’ group Ibec to draft a toolkit to help businesses address this growing problem.

Nicola Harkin is head of employment law services at Ibec and she joined Ciaran Hancock to explain the reasons behind this surge in aggression and how its new toolkit might help.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode of Inside Business, we begin with Aer Lingus, after pilots at the airline voted again on Monday to pursue industrial action over a long-running pay dispute with the company.

On Tuesday, the pilots’ union Ialpa announced a work-to-rule that will begin on June 26th and run for an indefinite period.

Barry O’Halloran of The Irish Times has been covering the various twists and turns in this pay dispute for many months now and he explained what impact a work-to-rule would have on Aer Lingus’s schedule.

And what could this dispute mean for customers planning costly holidays this summer? Tune in to hear Conor Pope explain what protections are in place for those booking independently or through a travel agent.

Also on this week’s podcast, we hear from Irish Times London Correspondent Mark Paul who has been on the campaign trail around the UK with the Tories and Labour.

Data from the Bank of England suggested inflation had returned to its 2 per cent target, which should be good news for the Conservative Party. Instead, Rishi Sunak has failed to generate any cut through with voters, in spite of announcing a number of tax cuts and other headline measures. But what would the economic policy of a Labour government look like?

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.