Latest news with #EconomicSocialResearchInstitute
Irish Times
02-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Free bets and money-back guarantees cause gamblers to bet more, new study shows
Free bets, money-back guarantees and other special offers from gambling companies cause gamblers to spend over 10 per cent more, according to new research. A study by think tank, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), funded by the State's gambling watchdog, the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland , found these inducements disproportionately entice those at risk of problem gambling. The research was carried out in the weeks before the 2024 Uefa European Football championship, with a sample of 622 men under the age of 40, the majority of whom were regular gamblers. [ Generation gamble: the invisible addiction crisis gripping Ireland's teenagers Opens in new window ] Participants were given money to place up to six bets on matches in the championship. Half of these participants were presented with offers of free bets and money-back guarantees, causing them to spend more than 10 per cent more, and encouraging about half of the participants to bet. READ MORE Although most of the sample were regular gamblers, most participants were unaware of the terms and conditions of betting inducements. More than half who accepted a free bet believed their stake would be returned if they won, despite this not being standard practice in the market. Some 87 per cent who took a free bet were unaware of the size of the stake, and 63 per cent of those who took the same offer were unaware of what would be returned if they won. Participants exposed to 'bad bets', which offer odds well below market rates, were three times more likely to spend money on these types of bets, despite being better off choosing other options or not betting at all. Dr Diarmaid Ó Ceallaigh, a research fellow in the ESRI 's behavioural research unit, said the findings 'support the case for stricter regulation of gambling offers in Ireland, following steps already taken in other European countries, such as banning sign-up bonuses, restricting offers to at-risk individuals, and capping their value'. Anne Marie Caulfield, chief executive of the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, said the findings 'add weight to the discourse around the harms of gambling inducements'.
Irish Times
02-07-2025
- Health
- Irish Times
You might as well expect Conor McGregor and Paul Murphy to work together as Stormont to function
When I speak with people in Dublin I'm shocked by the lack of knowledge of the scale of crisis in Northern Ireland 's health service. 'But you have a free service in the North, so much better than the HSE.' A free service with inadequate capacity can be no service at all. Long waits – often for several years – are standard for health treatment in Northern Ireland. Recently published analysis by the Economic and Social Research Institute concluded that while 12 per 1,000 people on waiting lists in Ireland were there for 18 months or longer, in the North the comparable figure was 86 per 1,000. Sadly, the crisis in healthcare in Northern Ireland is not a unique failure in political delivery . Indeed, health waiting lists cause other problems. Health incapacity is the most common cause of economic inactivity – thousands who want to work are unable to do so because of long waits for surgery and other treatment. Water infrastructure is another crunch point. Lack of sewage and water supply capacity is constraining housing construction and industrial development. Around £300m (€350m) a year is being invested in water infrastructure, compared to the minimum of £500m that NI Water says it needs and the £640m a year that the construction industry argues for. READ MORE [ Stormont is slow, afraid of new thinking and costly, says report Opens in new window ] The North's infrastructure crisis – and yes, it is a crisis – is further illustrated by last week's court judgment blocking the upgrade of the A5 , the most dangerous road on the island which connects Donegal as well as Derry to Dublin. The court found that NI's Department for Infrastructure did not explain how the scheme meets the obligations of Stormont's own climate change legislation. Another serious failing in Northern Ireland is the education and skills system . The North has too few graduates, with around a third of undergraduates studying away because of lack of capacity within the local universities. Nor are there enough adults with high-level vocational skills. This, in turn, reflects a schools system based around academic selection – with many children from lower-income families not making the grade into the best-performing grammar schools. A consequence is that Northern Ireland has lots of teenagers who switch off in school and leave the education system at an early age. Rates of early school leaving are three times higher in the North than in Ireland. One in ten school pupils in the North becomes disengaged as a teenager. These children are more likely to become economically inactive as adults, less likely to gain well-paid employment, more likely to suffer ill health and more likely to gain criminal records, becoming prisoners at high cost to the state. All these problems (and many more) can be argued to be results of a political system that is unable to make difficult choices and allocate resources objectively. The Belfast Agreement achieved peace, but failed to provide an effective system of government. Indeed, Stormont has not even been sitting or operational for 40 per cent of the time since the agreement was signed. The Belfast Agreement never evolved beyond 'conflict by peaceful means'. [ 'People don't care that much': Frustrated sighs audible as students asked the 'British or Irish' question Opens in new window ] This context raises the question: can Stormont be reformed? After working within the Stormont system as a political adviser, I left convinced that it cannot be made to work effectively. I was astonished at the continued sectarianism I perceived from some politicians, 27 years after the Belfast Agreement and the declaration of peace. For many politicians in the North, governing is a zero-sum game – our community loses if your community gains anything. The result is that both communities are held back by the failure to govern for the good of all. And, equally important, Northern Ireland is no longer a society of just two communities. While Catholics today outnumber Protestants, these religious groupings contain a wide range of differences and neither forms a majority. The third section – from other and no religions and arriving from elsewhere – is large and in a sense, underrepresented politically. It is difficult to see how the existing structures of mutual veto by the senior representatives of unionism and republicanism can be remoulded to create a functional system. One wag suggested it is like giving joint government to Jeremy Corbyn and Nigel Farage and expecting it to work. (Or, it might be said, to Conor McGregor and Paul Murphy.) The permanent impasse at Stormont and its inbuilt dysfunctionality causes many to find Irish unity the attractive alternative. But unity is not an easy option. For one thing, there is the cost. Unaffordable says Professor John FitzGerald, given the scale of the subvention (subsidy) from the UK government. Affordable argues Professor John Doyle, not least given the potentially transformative impact of unification. Then there is the timeline, process, destination and lack of preparation. It is perhaps wrong to consider Irish reunification as a potential 'big bang' event. As Professors Seamus McGuinness and Adele Bergin have pointed out, the handover of Hong Kong to China took 13 years. The transition of East Germany is an ongoing process that has so far taken 35 years. What concerns me most is the suggestion that Irish unity should lead to a federalised arrangement in which Stormont continues. When I argued to an Oireachtas committee a couple of years ago that the Northern Ireland Assembly is so dysfunctional that it cannot be retained within a new Irish State, the reaction from some senators seemed like suppressed horror. Why an institution that does not work and apparently cannot work should be retained within a new island-wide constitution is completely beyond me. For many close observers, abolition of Stormont is the single most attractive element of Irish unity. For all their faults, the Irish Government and the Irish State work and are effective. Difficult decisions are taken, with mostly good outcomes. If the Irish Government comprises adults, their equivalents in the North often seem like rowdy teenagers – more focused on arguing and scoring points than on reaching compromise, consensus and the best solutions. It would be understandable if people in Ireland read this and think, 'why do we want them?' Despite the challenges, the emotional desire for Irish unity remains stable across the South's population. The work of the Shared Island Unit has illustrated the challenges involved – it is the practical path to be navigated that remains to be agreed. Paul Gosling is author of A New Ireland – A Five Year Review of Progress, published by Colmcille Press
Irish Times
25-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on housing provision: builders needed
Anyone who wants to undertake a refurbishment of their home will know that a key task is finding a builder. And if one can be found, it will soon become clear that the price has risen significantly from what it would have been a couple of years ago. In part this reflects general inflation and in part the shortage of tradespeople in all areas and the higher prices which they now charge. This problem also exists at a national level. The latest quarterly commentary from the Economic and Social Research Institute(ESRI) underlines the point, referring to earlier research it presented, which showed that 40,000 additional employees would be required to increase annual output by 20,000 homes. It had appeared that a fall-off in non-residential construction such as offices might help here, but this has picked up again in the first quarter of this year, while residential construction has fallen. This is part of the reason why the ESRI is cautious on the issue of housing completions this year, saying on current trends that around 33,000 might be delivered, followed by 37,000 next year. And it warns that even these relatively modest forecasts face some 'notable' downside risks. The ESRI says it makes this point in part to underline the difficulty of ramping up housing supply quickly. And it underlines some obvious policy directions in trying to boost training in the sector and also improve productivity through more modern construction methods. READ MORE However, it also points to one more immediate implication. The Government is working on an update of its National Development Programme, the State's long-term investment plan. The dilemma for the Coalition is that doing everything quickly will not be possible, with the economy at full capacity. Trying to progress on all fronts would only push up construction inflation – and anyway would not be achievable, due in part to the shortage of employees. Planning and prioritisation is thus essential. The State has the cash, for now at least, but delivery is complex.
Irish Times
18-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on cost-of-living increases: children are bearing the brunt
The upward spiral in the cost of living may have now abated to less than 2 per cent per year but the cumulative 20 per cent jump since 2020 has a long tail. A spate of recent studies and reports have detailed how rising costs impose an unfair burden on the most vulnerable, with children bearing the brunt of it. A study compiled by the St Vincent de Paul found that many families have been left struggling to make ends meet in the wake of the rise in the cost of everyday goods and services. The income of a one-parent household which is dependent on social welfare supports – with a primary and second-level school-going child – only covers 82 per cent of their minimum needs as defined by the study. Many low-income families are dependent on in-work supports such as housing and childcare payments, even though family members are in employment. Even in those households deemed above the poverty line – defined as having a disposable income above 60 per cent of the median – many children experienced deprivation, such as not having a warm home or a second pair of sturdy shoes. Almost one in five children fit into this category, says the Economic & Social Research Institute, which identifies housing costs, disability and lone parenting as drivers of what they term enforced deprivation. READ MORE A report from the Children's Rights Alliance finds that the number of children in consistent poverty in Ireland had increased by more than 45,000 in one year, bringing the total to over 100,000. Children are the most likely group in society to experience poverty, according to the alliance. The issue has also come to the attention of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission which has written to primary and post-primary schools, outlining a series of recommendations aimed at cutting back-to-school costs. The CCPC cites research by the Irish League of Credit Unions that found two-thirds of families see back to school costs to be a significant burden. The publication of these reports and studies on the cost of living and its impact on child poverty comes as the Government kicked off the Budget 2026 process this week at the National Economic Dialogue. It is probably not entirely coincidental. The issue is clearly on the Government's radar with the Taoiseach telling the dialogue meeting he has asked his Ministers to come up with measures that 'will really make the difference to the most vulnerable families and children'. The Taoiseach has not ruled out the introduction of a second tier of child benefit payments – a measure supported by ESRI research – in the budget. He has cautioned that it is important to first determine if the current spike in child poverty is a temporary blip after a period of progress. That would seem most unlikely given the evidence to hand.
Irish Times
17-06-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Disability and debt causing financial strain in families and pushing children into deprivation, report warns
Spiralling housing costs are forcing more children into 'enforced deprivation', preventing them from having basics like a warm home or a second pair of sturdy shoes, a report published today warns. The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) study found that, in 2023, almost one in five children (17 per cent) were living lives classified as 'deprived' despite coming from households with incomes above the poverty line. This was up from 12 per cent the previous year. The way poverty is currently measured is not fully capturing the level of deprivation suffered by all children, the report says. It adds that this may have to change 'to include factors like housing costs and the cost of disability'. Those who live in poverty come from households with a disposable income below 60 per cent of the median. People are experiencing deprivation if they are unable to afford two or more of 11 key items. This includes an adequately heated home or a main meal with protein at least every second day. READ MORE The report, Deprived children in Ireland: Characterising those who are deprived but not income-poor, looks at the growing number of children in such households. A 'significant number of this cohort is facing high housing costs, preventing them from translating their relatively higher income into an adequate standard of living', say the authors. 'This report finds that 39 per cent of children in [this cohort] are living in households where at least one member over the age of 16 has a disability.' It goes on to say this 'suggests that the additional costs of disability are another reason for experiencing deprivation while not being income-poor'. Forty-one per cent of children who are not officially in poverty, but who are suffering enforced deprivation, live in lone-parent households. Their families are often enduring 'financial, health and wellbeing strains', with more debt and arrears than even the poorest families. The report added: 'This suggests accumulated debt is another reason why those above the income threshold are materially deprived.' The authors highlight 'the role of housing costs for understanding the living standards of families with children and their risk of deprivation'. They continue: 'Poverty measures calculated using a post-housing cost measure of income are now routinely published by the Central Statistics Office . . . Adjusting income for the cost of disability to take account of this group's significant additional needs should also be considered.' More comprehensive policies to tackle child poverty are needed to ensure children in these families are not being excluded from supports, say the authors. The report notes the 'significant role that social transfers and benefits . . . play in reducing child poverty at a national level', as well as a 2023 ESRI finding that a second tier of child benefit could lift 40,000 children out of income poverty . Eva Slevin, co-author of the report, says it highlights 'the serious challenges faced by families whose incomes are above the poverty line but still experience deprivation'. She added: 'These include high levels of financial strain, difficulty coping with unexpected expenses and high levels of depression and poor health among household heads. These problems are on a similar scale to those captured by the official 'consistent poverty' measure, suggesting this group should also be considered for policy intervention.' Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the report would 'help us better understand the factors contributing to deprivation and poverty among children, [and] help us target responses to our most vulnerable children and to ensure that every child gets the start they deserve'.
