Inside Business with Ciaran Hancock

Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe says better-than-expected exchequer returns show our economic "resilience", but do the numbers hide deeper scars? Cliff Taylor joins Ciaran to look at the latest set of economic figures showing Ireland's tax, spending and unemployment in the pandemic-stricken Q1 of 2021. Plus, Barry O'Halloran looks at Ryanair's passenger numbers for the same period of time and assesses the health of our aviation sector. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week the Government revealed its plan for the phased reopening the economy from April 12th onwards. On today’s show, Ciaran is joined by Ibec chief executive Danny McCoy and Cliff Taylor of The Irish Times to discuss what will it mean for Irish business and the wider economy. Is the timeline for reopening too sluggish? And, with the pace of the vaccine rollout ramping up, when might the Government begin withdrawing the financial supports currently propping up so many parts of the Irish economy? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Value(s) is the new book by economist and former governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney. It’s an exploration into the ways in which economic and social values have become blurred and the radical change that is needed to build a better world for all. Recently, Irish Times columnist Chris Johns sat down with the Canadian banker for a wide ranging discussion on reshaping societal values, his involvement with online payment firm Stripe and his proud Irish heritage. Today we bring you that interview. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's a year since the Irish economy first shut down. Parts of it have scarcely reopened since. For an update on how the pandemic is affecting the overall economy, Ciaran talks to Mark Paul of The Irish Times and economist Jim Power. In the retail sector, many businesses are carrying significant rent arrears from periods of lockdown. Some of them may never be able to pay those arrears back. But the shopkeepers and stall-holders of George's Street Arcade in Dublin won't face this problem, because their landlord has suspended rents throughout the periods of lockdown. We hear from Gwen Layden of Layden Group, the family company that owns the Arcade, about why she has taken this approach, how much it has cost her family and why she says all commercial tenants should be treated in this way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We look at the extraordinary events of the past week at Ireland's biggest stockbroker Davy, with help from reporter Joe Brennan and Professor Niamh Brennan, an expert on corporate governance. Davy was fined €4.1 million for conducting a bond deal in which 16 of its own employees, including senior executives, were the buyers, a fact unbeknownst to the seller. How could such a breach occur and what comes next for the company? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With such reduced passenger numbers, how has Dublin Bus adapted and survived in the age of Covid-19? And what does the future hold?To find out, Ciaran went to the semi-state transport company's newly refurbished Broadstone depot to meet CEO Ray Coyne. They talked about the future of transport in Dublin, how technology will allow bus routes to become more flexible, the electrification of the fleet, and how Dublin Bus may diversify into "last mile" transport solutions such as e-scooters. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Twinlite describes itself as the best property company in Dublin. A family run business, their property portfolio consists of housing and apartment developments in Dalkey, Clongriffin and Stepaside. In today’s episode, Ciaran Hancock sits down with Executive Director at Twinlite, Rick Larkin, for a wide ranging discussion on the Irish housing market. Larkin speaks about the impact of lockdown restrictions on construction, the economics of building apartments and the future of housing design. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After almost a year in an out of lockdown, many retailers have seen their premises shuttered for vast majority of the last 52 weeks. A good deal of them have managed to strike rent agreements with their landlords, but some are refusing to make concessions for the pandemic. Ciarán talks to Michael Callaghan, head of commercial finance at Carraig Donn, about how they've been handling the issue with their 42 landlords across the country and the future of the retail sector after coronavirus. They're joined by Mark Paul, The Irish Times business affairs correspondent. Plus: We could find out this week if Ulster Bank is to exit the Irish market, when its UK parent company NatWest publishes full-year results on Friday morning. Joe Brennan has the background on what’s led to this moment and the impact a wind up of the bank would have here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's podcast we look at how Covid-19 has created a series of complications for the many companies based in Ireland with large numbers of employees from other countries. What are the tax implications for foreign workers employed here who, having been sent home from the office, decided to return to their home countries temporarily? Ciaran asks reporter Colm Keena and Daryl Hanberry, tax partner with Deloitte. Plus: Trinity College Dublin economist Ronan Lyons on his recent report for property website Daft that shows residential rents in Dublin have dipped by 3% in the past year while continuing to rise elsewhere. Ronan explains what is behind these trends and what lies ahead for our dysfunctional housing market.This podcast is sponsored by Davy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Galway-based company HidraMed Solutions has won the Irish Times Innovation of the Year award for 2020 for developing a novel dressing system aimed at those suffering from the incurable skin disease, Hidradenitis Suppurativa. In today’s episode, HidraMed founder Suzanne Maloney joins Ciaran Hancock to speak about the company’s origins, products and plans for expansion. But first, Ciaran is joined by Irish Times business journalist Eoin Burke Kennedy and by James Benson, Director of the Irish Home Builders Association to discuss the impact ongoing lockdowns are having on the construction sector. The IHBA has estimated that the supply of new homes could be reduced by 8,000 this year as a result of the current stoppage, so what will this mean for the already squeezed housing market if the lockdown is extended beyond March? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.