IT article: "State spending has soared by 1/3rd since 2016 with little discernible benefit"

[Brendan Burgess]

State spending has soared by one third since 2016, with little discernible benefit to Ireland’s citizens

Economically Ireland has no right-of-centre politics, and public spending has jumped by a third since the 2016 election

www.irishtimes.com

I challenge anyone to explain how public services and infrastructure have improved in tandem with the rise in public spending. What stands out is the incrementalism of it all. Nobody in advance of the 2016 election set out a plan to grow the State in real terms by well over a third. We have never had a conversation on that scale. Yet somehow, slyly, silently it happened.

Fine Gael in government has presided over ballooning public spending. It is a fake right party mouthing platitudes but refusing to practise the virtues. Fianna Fáil has joined it and there is no discernible policy difference. Economically Ireland has no right-of-centre politics.

 

[Numberten]

I couldn't agree more Brendan! This has been a noticeable trend, fueled by low borrowing rates and turbo charged by Covid. Now the cycle has turned with rising interest rates etc. no political party has the guts to call this out. The centre in Ireland is clearly to the left and stuck there! There has to be a gap for at least a right of centre party.

 

[joe sod]

But why has this happened in Ireland, the drift to the left but not elsewhere in Europe where politics is moving to the right.
I think it is the media here frightening the mainstream away from common sense financial probity and towards leftist social spending. This is facilitated by the huge corporation tax bonanza

 

[Purple]

Our expansion of the State has been done to avoid the consequences of our previous actions and has resulted in making the economy less competitive and the country less attractive for the foreign direct investment that the whole thing is built on. We are drowning the golden goose in State funded lard.

 

[Purple]

I think it is the media here frightening the mainstream away from common sense financial probity and towards leftist social spending.

I agree. The (Cork) Examiner and the Irish Times are strongly left wing. The Shinners are brilliant at manipulating social media and the Government Parties are appallingly bad at communicating their message so instead they react to Shinner Twitterbots and the Trade Union Mouthpiece that is RTE.

 

[wondering]

But why has this happened in Ireland, the drift to the left but not elsewhere in Europe where politics is moving to the right.

Europe is a bit 'ahead' in terms of migrant issues, that's why they're turning right.