Ulster Bank closes doors; Savers subsidising home loans; and double whammy for Irish consumers

Ulster Bank is laying the ground for plans to repatriate more than €4 billion of capital to its UK parent, as the bank closes its remaining 63 branches and its cash machines in the Republic today, hastening a retreat from the market.

With the branch closures, Peter Flanagan looks at the state of personal banking in Ireland ... and what will happen the 63 branch building that will no longer serve bank customers form today, and when.

Lenders are making €1.8 billion in interest in Irish consumers savings and using it to subsidise mortgage rates, Central Bank governor Gabriel Makhlouf told an Oireachtas committee. Joe Brennan was there.

State airports company DAA returned to profit in 2022 with a ¤98 million surplus after tax as it emerged from almost two years of Government Covid curbs and, writes Barry O’Halloran, the company expects passenger numbers this year to equal those of 2019.

Helping offshore energy developers factor the impact on nature into their planning process

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Interruptions undermine workplace focus and productivity

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It seems an improbable odyssey for London to ever become the new Silicon Valley

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Irish homes continue to pay high prices for energy while European suppliers cut rates on the back of falling wholesale charges, new figures show. And an analysis shows consumers hear have been hit with a double whammy as, since 2020, Irish prices have risen more sharply than in the rest of the euro zone. Barry O’Halloran reports.

The Co Wicklow pub formerly owned by convicted murderer Catherine Nevin has lodged a planning application for a glamping development adjacent to the pub at Brittas Bay, writes Gordon Deegan.

Insurer Allianz Ireland suffered more than €154 million of paper losses on its investment portfolio last year as the value of bonds held by the company dropped amid rising interest rates globally as a result of central banks seeking to fight spiralling inflation, writes Joe Brennan.

And Eoin Burke-Kennedy reports that the Government ran a record budget surplus of €8 billion last year as strong tax revenues offset the additional spending on Covid and energy-related supports.

In World of Work, we tell you why people with surnames starting with a letter later in the alphabet fare better at interview, and why taller men tend to get paid more.

John FitzGerald argues that if we are to learn the lessons of the past at all, we must ensure that the current corporation tax windfall and budget surpluses are not frittered away on day to day spending.

And finally, in Any Other Business, John Burns looks at how former US president Donald Trump values his Doonbeg resort, what next for David McRedmond, whether time is up for the betting duty and a warning on fraud.

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