The role of tax policy in Ireland's economic renaissance

This paper analyzes the role of tax policy in the transformation of the Irish economy
from the 1980s to the 1990s. Details are provided of the marked underperformance
of the economy in the 1980s, evidenced by rising unemployment, falling employment,
stagnant living standards, and a looming fiscal crisis. The correction of the fiscal
imbalances in the late 1980s was followed by a remarkable transformation of the
economy. In the 1990s, the Irish economy led Europe in terms of employment
creation, unemployment reduction, and improved living standards. The increasing
ratio of debt to gross domestic product was reversed, and Ireland easily qualified
to adopt the European common currency in 1999.