{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/633b3ddf2ce407001121c7e5/6ac3b9b07cbb919e688f0188?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"Budget week is here. Simple narratives versus complex reality. And some method acting.","thumbnail_width":200,"thumbnail_height":200,"thumbnail_url":"https://open-images.acast.com/shows/633b3ddf2ce407001121c7e5/1791212265211-c4531abc-4444-46ef-9cbf-68724d3d83e6.jpeg?height=200","description":"<ul><li>In this episode, Jim breaks down the Irish Department of Finance white paper and says the public finances still look strong, with a forecast general government surplus of 6.9 billion euro this year and 13.5 billion euro in 2027.</li><li>The conversation focuses on corporation tax, which is forecast at 34.1 billion euro this year and 39 billion euro next year, but below an earlier projection of 35.3 billion euro.</li><li>Jim stresses that October and November are still crucial months for corporation tax, so the apparent undershoot may not tell the full story yet.</li><li>Chris raises the warning - yet again - that Ireland’s corporation tax base is becoming dangerously concentrated, with a small number of multinational companies accounting for a huge share of receipts.</li><li>Jim notes that income tax, corporation tax, and VAT make up 89.9% of total tax take, showing how much the budget depends on a very small number of revenue streams.</li><li>The discussion turns to the government’s likely 8.5 billion euro budget package, and the political impossibility of satisfying workers, businesses, unions, students, welfare recipients, and public service groups at once.</li><li>Chris argues for a long-term strategy of explaining fiscal reality to the public, especially the danger of using temporary tax revenues for permanent spending.</li><li>Jim pushes back, saying political reality makes that kind of strategy hard to deliver, especially under pressure from industrial action, election incentives, and short-term budget politics.</li><li>We move to housing, using Spain’s snap election and housing protests to show that housing affordability is a global issue, not a uniquely Irish or British one.</li><li>The episode includes a broader reflection on how people and politicians handle complexity, whether on immigration, Israel-Palestine, or fiscal policy, and how often narratives overpower data. </li><li>And extra holes in belts.</li></ul>","author_name":"Jim Power & Chris Johns"}