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McWilliams, David
5 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Cutbacks won't help indebted Irish
According to a report on global debt published by consulting firm McKinsey, Ireland is the country with the largest amount of private debt. Irish households are burdened with two and a half times as much debt as Greek households. The debtors should declare their insolvency, the economics expert David McWilliams urges in the conservative daily the Irish Independent: "The implication of this figure is that the Irish economy has to grow six times faster than the interest rate charged on this debt in order for the overall debt burden to remain stable. Assuming that the rate of interest - even with all the negotiations - is 4 percent. This means that the Irish economy would have to grow by 24 percent next year, just to ensure that the debt/GDP ratio stays stable. There are two ways you can get out of debt. One is that you can work your way out over years and years. This is the 'right' thing to do. But sometimes, when the weight of debt is just too heavy, it is impossible."
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More from the press review on the subject » Financial Markets, » Banks, » Economy, » Ireland, » Europe
Arab Spring drives up oil prices
At over 100 dollars per barrel crude oil costs almost double its average price in the past eight years. And this won't change any time soon, the conservative daily Irish Independent predicts, seeing the trend as a result of the Arab Spring: "The Saudi royal family decided to kill any incipient revolution with kindness. It spent money on all sorts of welfare payments. ... Brilliant research conducted by the Centre for Energy Studies has put one figure on what the price of oil has to be for the Saudis to be able to afford this new policy of killing the revolution with kindness. In early 2011, it was $74 a barrel minimum at a production level of $8.5m at day. ... More liberty over there, means less growth over here - hardly ideal, but that's the way the story goes when you are completely dependent on oil."
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More from the press review on the subject » Energy, » Consumers, » Economic Policy, » Global, » Middle East
Irish debtors need fresh start
As the number of unemployed in Ireland grows, so do the country's debts. Around 200,000 houseowners are now in arrears with their mortgage payments. Families are losing their homes, but the debts remain. Ireland needs a new debt system, the conservative daily the Irish Independent demands: "On the issue of negative equity, a way forward would be to adopt the American system of non-recourse loans. This means that the loan is fixed to the house and not the person. So the person can hand back the keys and the loan doesn't follow her around for the rest of her life. This means that the principle of co-responsibility is instated whereby the lender, as well as the borrower, is responsible. If the bank made the mistake of lending too much to an individual, the bank pays. It gets the property and the individual is free to rent down the road or somewhere else. In this way, we do not penalise the person for her mistake indefinitely. ...But the person can start again and starting again is the essence."
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More from the press review on the subject » Consumers, » Banks, » Society, » Ireland
Ireland should invest in its agriculture
Because of the threat of food shortages in the future economics expert David McWillliams, writing for the conservative daily The Irish Independent, urges Ireland to invest in its agriculture: "Around the world, there are a few huge growth areas, where investment could dramatically raise yields. The former breadbasket of Europe, Ukraine, has huge potential. ... However, corruption and underinvestment have caused chaos in Ukrainian agriculture in the past decade. So what does this mean for Ireland? Well, it means the biggest industrial opportunity for decades for large Irish agricultural firms. We have the know-how, the technology and the connections with the rest of the world to create a giant agricultural multinational, which invests in land in places like Ukraine and Africa and helps the people of these countries. ... This is a chance to get on the right side of a huge opportunity."
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More from the press review on the subject » Economic Policy, » Ireland
Ireland must give up the euro
In view of the menace of recession, the Irish economist David McWilliams wonders if it would not be better to leave the Eurozone: "If a Martian economist landed in Ireland he'd see straight away that Ireland is caught in a currency arrangement which will make our recession much deeper than necessary. This is an economic fact, not a political slogan. The euro is now part of the problem, not part of the solution. ... We find ourselves in the bizarre situation where we can't reflate our economy either by printing money or by borrowing. ... As a result, unemployment will rise to a much higher level and house prices will fall much further than necessary in the next few years. ... The only way Irish people straddled with huge mortgage debts (the legacy of our stupid binge) will be able to pay these off is with a bout of massive inflation. It sounds radical but this is the truth. ... When an economy is in a nosedive, it is the democratic responsibility of the elected government to do something about it. In bad times, ideas that seem extreme in 'normal' times are sometimes entertained."
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More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Ireland, » Europe
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