Sir, – US president-elect Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs, and reducing corporation tax to inveigle large corporations, like Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc, to return to the US, will decide the next four years for Ireland when it comes to spending on goods, infrastructure and services.
Not only is Mr Trump insistent on tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods but also on China and European goods, which will lead to reciprocal tariffs, and which could lead to a further global economic shocks that will fuel high inflation, and further increases in the cost of living, services, and fuel products.
Ireland, and whichever party, or parties, are in government after this election, must be mindful of the threat Mr Trump brings from January 2025 to any gains that we have made from the US.
How will we deal with this major shock and gap in our finances, and who or what will the next government prioritise?
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According to the Budget Lab at Yale University, the imposition of tariffs by Mr Trump “will add another $1,200 in lost purchasing power” to his own electorate if retaliatory tariffs are put in place by other world economies.
Ireland is a small but vibrant economy which depends on large global businesses like Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Apple, PayPal, and Airbnb, which have established their European headquarters in Dublin because of Ireland’s corporation tax rate of 12.5 per cent.
According to Revenue, gross receipts of €26,482 million were collected in 2023, with net receipts of €23,842 million, a 5.3 per cent increase on 2022.
Some 123,400 people are employed in the IT sector.
If any or all of those companies decide to return to America, if Mr Trump offers more favourable corporation tax incentives, then we would be in for a nasty shock.
Then there are the almost 373,200 persons (CSO figures for 2022) engaged in three other sectors of the Irish economy which have been grappling with increased VAT, higher wages, fuel and electricity costs, pension enrolments, etc, and all of which provide much-needed employment: the retail, food and beverage, and motor trade sectors.
All of these have been impacted, and could be further impacted, by further increasing costs if tariffs are imposed.
While we have gone through a major financial shock, Brexit, Covid and the impact of the war in Ukraine, we must be prepared for the incoming shocks when Mr Trump regains power and places insurmountable burdens on small economies like Ireland with his isolationist, protective and anti-global policies. – Yours, etc,
CHRISTY GALLIGAN,
Letterkenny,
Co Donegal.
Sir, – Do we really need to fear the return of Donald Trump to the White House? He has two years out of the four in which he may exercise significant power but even from the start that power will begin to ebb. There are many within the Congress, the military establishment, and industry who are well-versed in fighting their own corner and who know they can and will outlast Donald Trump.
With or without fanfare, these Washington insiders will create obstacles to frustrate Mr Trump’s desires; they will win and lose battles but all the while keep draining away more of Mr Trump’s power. And lest we forget, Trump being Trump, will never have a successor; none of the political pygmies who have latched onto his coattails possess his drawing power to keep his voter base intact. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN FALTER,
Ballyshannon,
Co Donegal.