Irish Times Inside Business

In today's podcast Cliff Taylor previews next week's budget and Peter Hamilton takes a trip to Trifol, a Portlaoise-based company which has developed a lucrative process for turning landfill plastic into wax.Plus: Laura Slattery has a roundup of some of the week's other business including Paddy Power's mega-merger with Canadian rival Stars and Tesco's little-known new CEO, Irishman Ken Murphy. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Last weekend saw a successful opening of the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan. Today on Inside Business we take a look at the tournament through a business lens. Ciaran Hancock and Mick O'Keeffe of Teneo PSG are joined by Sean Kavanagh, Global Director at Pentland Brands (whose suite of brands includes Canterbury), Padraig Power, Commercial and Marketing director at the IRFU and Ed Dixon, a journalist with Sportspro See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The OECD’s efforts to frame a global tax for multi-nationals that will satisfy the demands of the 134 countries involved in the long-running process was discussed at the PwC-Irish Times Tax Summit earlier this week. Cliff Taylor and Eoin Burke-Kennedy join Ciarán to dissect comments made at the summit by Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe and Pascal Saint-Amans, director at the Centre for Tax Policy and Administration at the OECD. What will the changes mean for Ireland and what impact will they have on our bulging corporation tax receipts?Plus: Laura Slattery has the week’s other business news including Ireland’s Apple tax appeal, calls to tighten regulations on used-car imports and WeWork’s abandoned IPO. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It emerged last weekend that RTÉ sought a €55 million annual funding boost from the State, which it never got. Staff at the broadcaster have been warned that the organisation cannot continue as it is without a significant increase in state funding. That's unlikely to materialise in the upcoming budget. So, what now? Does the solution lie in a doubling of the licence fee, cutting staff, or selling its Dublin 4 campus and starting from scratch?In today’s podcast, Larry Bass of ShinAwiL Productions predicts a grim future in which the state broadcaster will be without funding to make Irish productions and could be caught up in industrial disputes. We’re also joined by Irish Times business affairs correspondent Mark Paul, who this week wrote that RTÉ’s funding woes are of its own making.Plus: Peter Hamilton has a roundup of some of the other business stories of the week, including the much mourned closure of beloved Dublin venue The Bernard Shaw. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The new governor of the Irish Central Bank, Gabriel Makhlouf, settled into the role this week, telling staff that he will be in listening mode over the coming months. Joe Brennan outlines what he’ll have found waiting in his in-tray on his first day, including a key ECB governing council meeting on September 12th that will consider whether to ease rates or launch a new bond-buying programme – or both – to shore up the euro zone economy.Later: Mark Paul has the story of Irish-backed company, Process & Industrial Development, which has won a $9.6 billion (€8.7 billion) UK court judgment against the Nigerian government. P&ID, an offshore company linked to Dublin-based Industrial Consultants (International), won the huge arbitration award after a 2010 gas deal to build an oil refinery in Calabar fell through.Plus: Peter Hamilton has some of the other big stories this week including exchequer returns, Dalata results and falling wine sales. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Two sets of figures were released by the CSO this week. One shows a return to net emigration in Ireland: more people departed the country than arrived in the year to April. Another set, the latest Labour Force Survey, reveals 2.3 million people are now employed in the state, the highest ever figure. What lies behind the figures? Dominic Coyle asks Eoin Burke Kennedy. And Fiona Reddan has a story of a too-good-to-be-true investment opportunity that turned out to be just that. First, though, it's Peter Hamilton with a roundup of the latest business news including another dip in sterling, another Press Up investment and punishment for corporates implicated in the US opioid crisis. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Earlier this week Irish Times columnist Chris Johns wrote about why a hard Brexit on October 31st will be the beginning, rather than the end, of a chaotic phase in Britain’s history and that the country is facing a future as a failed state. He talks to Ciarán about why that is and why he believes that Boris Johnson’s decision to back Dominic Cummings as his senior adviser will come back to haunt him.They’re joined by Ibec’s director of policy and public affairs Fergal O’Brien to discuss why it is so difficult for Irish business to prepare for a no-deal outcome, how the Irish economy will cope and what measures Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe needs to take in October’s budget to soften the landing in 2020.Plus: Peter Hamilton takes us through some of the week’s other business news including Ryanair’s scuppered pilot strike, Facebook’s new privacy tool and Hershey’s stake in Irish snack brand Fulfil. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Vodafone got out of the traps first this week announcing the beginning of its roll-out of 5G internet. So, how much will it cost? And, what will it mean for Irish businesses and consumers? Ciarán talks to Professor Ronan Farrell of Maynooth University, which launched a 5G test centre earlier this year, and Irish Times business reporter Charlie Taylor.Plus: Laura Slattery has a roundup of some of the other business stories of the week including the departure of Norwegian Air from the Irish market, the purchase of Green Reit and a chill in property prices. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Harland & Wolff is officially in the hands of administrators. The legendary Belfast shipyard, once the world's largest, is now a symbol of the decline of British manufacturing and heavy industry. That decline is a subject that our guest today, Eamonn Fingleton, has written and reported on for decades. We're also joined by our reporter Francess McDonnell who has the latest on negotiations to keep the shipyard and its employees going.But first Laura Slattery has a roundup of the latest business news including a hefty fine for a large Irish firm, Boohoo buying Karen Millen and the disruptor snapping up a rare commodity: talented sports journalists. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Looming international tax changes will be a big setback for Ireland's relationship with multinationals. But how great is the danger? And, how can we adapt to these changes, while continuing to attract foreign direct investment and develop other parts of the economy?To discuss how this might play out, Cliff Taylor is joined by chief economist at Ibec Gerard Brady and Martina Lawless, associate research professor at the ESRI and member of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council.Plus: Laura Slattery on some of the other big stories this week, including steep Sterling loses and the continuing controversy surrounding Ireland's new Central Bank governor Gabriel Makhlouf. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Earlier this week minister of state at the Department of Finance Michael D'Arcy told The Financial Times that banking pay restrictions should remain in place - in spite of pressure from the banking industry to loosen them. AIB, Bank of Ireland and Permanent TSB are currently subject to a €500,000 salary cap, while a punitive 89% tax rate applies to any bonuses paid. Should the restrictions stay or go? Ciarán talks to Brian Hayes, former Fine Gael TD and MEP who is now CEO of the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland, and then by Pearse Doherty, Sinn Fein TD and finance spokesperson, for two different views on the issue. Plus, Peter Hamilton has all the latest business news including more pay disputes at Ryanair, how the markets are reaction to Boris Johnson's election as Tory party leader and struggling state agencies. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With the publication this week of the final report on Irish banks's practice over several years of denying customers their rightful tracker mortgage rates, Ciarán talks about the scandal with Brendan Burgess of consumer forum askaboutmoney.com and The Irish Times markets correspondent Joe Brennan. Have the banks really changed? And Peter Hamilton has all the latest business news, including the Irish firm turning plastic into wax and the sudden relevance of outgoing Bank of England governor Mark Carney's Irish citizenship. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On today's podcast Ciarán Hancock talks to David Hall, the mortgage debtor advocate, who expects 20,000 homes to be repossessed by banks or so-called vulture funds over the next six years. Mr Hall was a co-founder of the Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation, a not-for-profit body set up post the 2008 financial crash to help those in mortgage arrears to restructure their loans and remain in their homes.Earlier this month, in the wake of Ulster Bank announcing plans to sell ¤900 million worth of residential loans that are deep in arrears, Mr Hall said a tsunami of repossessions was coming in Ireland.He tells the podcast what IMHO plans next to help mortgage holders in arrears dealing with vulture funds.But first Peter Hamilton has the latest business news, including a look back at the life of Penneys founder Arthur Ryan who died this week. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Property price growth has slowed to its lowest level in five years, according to a report from Davy and property website myhome.ie.The study also suggests asking prices in Dublin, the most volatile segment of the market, are now falling for the first time since 2013.Eoin Burke-Kennedy of The Irish Times and Conall Mac Coille, chief economist at Davy, talk to Ciarán about what's behind the housing market moves. They also discuss the latest exchequer return figures that indicate a continuation of twin trends: a tax revenue boom, and cost overruns at the Department of Health. But first Peter Hamilton has the latest business news including a vacancy at the IMF with Christine Lagarde's appointment to the European Central Bank, more Press Up expansion, and a glimpse inside Larry Goodman's Goodman group. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Olympic Federation of Ireland President and Swim Ireland CEO Sarah Keane is among Ireland's top sports administrators. She talks to Ciaran and Michael O'Keeffe of Teneo PSG about her background in sport and law, what is involved in her various roles, the growth of female sport and the fallout for the Olympic movement in Ireland from the arrest of former president Pat Hickey at the Rio games in 2016. Plus, Michael has a roundup of all the latest news from the business of sport. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Are we building the wrong houses in the wrong places at the wrong prices? Sherry Fitzgerald chief economist Marian Finnegan and Orla Hegarty, architect and assistant professor at UCD’s School of Architecture, join presenter Cliff Taylor to discuss some troubling trends in the housing sector.Also in this podcast – Irish Times business reporter Fiona Reddan on why Credit Unions across the country are imposing savings caps.Plus: Peter Hamilton has some of the other stories in the news this week including Facebook's crypto currency, Libra. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In its latest report the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council has described the Government’s medium-term spending plans as “not credible”. The watchdog says there is an over-reliance on corporation tax receipts to cover ‘unplanned’ increases in spending, such as in health. In today’s podcast the chairman of IFAC, Seamus Coffey, explains why the council is so concerned about government spending, why the outlook for the Irish economy is “unusually uncertain” and what the immediate impact of a hard Brexit would be. He also talks about why he believes that IFAC’s warnings are influencing the Government’s handling of the public finances, despite an apparent reluctance to accept the watchdog’s findings.Plus: Peter Hamilton has a roundup of some of the week's other business headlines, including Ryanair's plan to add Malta Air to its expanding group of airlines. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

When it comes to supporting a culture of entrepreneurship, how does Ireland stack up against the global competition? Avolon CEO Dómhnal Slattery set out to find out, and he has compiled his findings in a report titled "Project i". He talks to Ciarán about what's in the report, where Ireland falls short for its start-ups and the role of state agencies like Enterprise Ireland. He also talks about aircraft leasing company Avolon, the future of aircraft in a low-carbon economy and the fate of the grounded Boeing Max fleet.But first Peter Hamilton is back with all the latest business stories. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Can we build a low-carbon economy in Ireland? On Monday business group Ibec launched its €40 billion blueprint, or greenprint, with proposals including increased forest cover, cutting emissions and raising carbon taxes. But is it ambitious enough? To discuss Ciarán is joined by Ibec CEO Danny McCoy, newly-elected Green Party councillor Hazel Chu and Cliff Taylor. But first Peter Hamilton has all the big news including car import woes for Irish sellers, Ireland's position on a US economic watchlist and what's happening at the Quinn Insurance inquiry. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Last week the high-end Dublin restaurant Luna closed after four years in business and just days after winning the Restaurant Association of Ireland’s best customer service award. The closure prompted some of the city’s leading restaurateurs to express concern about how development in the city is being managed, with accusations that things have got out of hand. Are there too many restaurants in Dublin? With already tight margins, has the increased VAT rate pushed the cost of doing business too high? Cliff Taylor is joined by Dublin restaurateur Elaine Murphy, DIT lecturer in culinary arts Dr Máirtín Mac Con Iomaire, and Irish Times consumer affairs correspondent Conor Pope to discuss. Also this week: Feargal O’Rourke, managing partner of PwC in Ireland, on the global focus on corporate tax and what that means for Ireland.Plus: Peter Hamilton’s roundup of the week’s other news including record-breaking employment figures and the collapse of British Steel. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out informatio