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Avatar photoPaul Sweeney

Paul Sweeney was chief economist with the Irish Congress of Trade Unions for a decade.

Ireland, the EU and the Apple tax case

Paul Sweeney

Ireland led the ‘race to the bottom’ on corporate taxation. The tide is beginning to turn.

The IRA and European industrial policy

Paul Sweeney

With the US turning interventionist, the EU will look foolish still backing ‘free markets’. Time for an enterprise policy.

From ‘free-market’ to subsidised capitalism

Paul Sweeney

To deal with the climate crisis, governments must recognise that only the state has allowed the last three crises to be contained.

Inflation in the strongest recovery since 1945

Paul Sweeney

Governments should ignore siren warnings that only hyperinflation can come from pandemic-induced investments.

An effective corporation-tax system for the EU

Paul Sweeney

Tax wars have so far denied the EU the unanimity required to stop the race to the bottom on corporation tax.

Ireland’s recovery: from bust to buoyancy … to Brexit?

Paul Sweeney

If procyclical domestic policies inflated Ireland’s economic bubble, procyclical austerity demanded by the troika which bailed it out makes Ireland’s recovery all the more remarkable.

Ireland’s route from boom to bubble to bust

Paul Sweeney

Ireland’s volatile economic path of recent decades has wider European policy implications. Part one: the ‘Celtic Tiger’ and its demise

The Collapse Of European Social Democracy, Part 2

Paul Sweeney

In the first part of his analysis Paul Sweeney pointed to a variety of causes behind the decline of social democracy over the past 30

The Collapse Of European Social Democracy, Part 1

Paul Sweeney

Introduction Social Democracy (SD) has been the most powerful political force in Europe since the Second World War. It turned the nation state into the

What Hope For Civilisation If Apple Pays No Tax?

Paul Sweeney

Brussels has been accused of “bending the rules” in its pursuit of Apple for €13 billion in taxes it says should have been paid in

On Apple Tax, State Must Side With Its Citizens

Paul Sweeney

It is widely agreed that globalisation has brought immense benefits. But it is also recognised that these benefits are not equally distributed. Last week’s Apple

Curbing Tax Avoidance, Tax Evasion And Tax Havens

Paul Sweeney

The aggressive tax avoidance by multinational corporations (MNCs) where they are now paying virtually no tax was highlighted recently by the takeover of “Irish” company Allergan

How Globalisation And Technology Drive Insecurity

Paul Sweeney

People are insecure. Young people worry about getting a decent job, finding a secure home and having to pay off the vast debts run up

My Experience With The Troika In Ireland

Paul Sweeney

The day the Troika came to town was a dark day for the Irish. Troika is a Russian word meaning a sled drawn by three

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The Progressive Yearbook is out!

With the volatile start to 2026, what insights can progressives learn from 2025? The 7th edition of the Progressive Yearbook is out now!
In this edition of the Progressive Yearbook, we offer analyses of the EU’s domestic issues—ranging from defense and digital autonomy to what remains of the previous Commission’s Green Deal—as well as global questions such as international trade, tariffs, and the emerging new world order.

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WSI Minimum Wage Report 2025

The trend towards significant nominal minimum wage increases is continuing this year. In view of falling inflation rates, this translates into a sizeable increase in purchasing power for minimum wage earners in most European countries. Most EU countries are now following the reference values for adequate minimum wages enshrined in the European Minimum Wage Directive, which are 60% of the median wage or 50% of the average wage.

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Social Europe

The European Employment and Social Rights Forum is back in Brussels and online on 3-4 March 2026

This year’s edition will address the EU’s response to the challenges many people face today: the rising cost of living, job insecurity, and changes in the labour market. Opinion leaders, policymakers, businesses, academics and civil society are invited to explore bold ideas to support Europe’s greatest strength: its people.

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Revisiting worker representation on boards

Board-level employee representation (BLER) has repeatedly resurfaced in times of crisis — from the 2008 financial crash to the Covid-19 pandemic — as a response to mismanagement and democratic erosion. Yet codetermination remains unevenly spread across the EU and underdeveloped within EU industrial relations. This ETUI volume revisits worker representation on company boards by shifting the focus beyond the usual German-centred lens and exploring debates, practices and social partners’ positions in ten often-overlooked EU Member States, to assess the prospects for such an institution to thrive in national social policy.

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