Archive for October 2023

Around four in five businesses are planning on increasing pay for employees in 2024, with an average pay rise of 3.8%. This is according to the latest Pay and HR Update, an annual survey of around 400 firms conducted by business group, Ibec. The figure is in line with the 84% of companies that increased…

Modular housing units need to be constructed in higher volumes in order to address the housing shortage crisis, according to the Director General of Engineers Ireland. Damien Owens argues that advantage should be taken of modern construction methods that can help to alleviate pressure on the housing market while improving sustainability in construction. He added…

Euro zone business activity took a surprise turn for the worse this month as demand fell in a broad-based downturn across the region, a survey showed, suggesting the bloc may slip into recession. HCOB’s flash euro zone Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global and seen as a good guide to overall economic…

A new competency framework to drive higher standards in corporate governance is being launched today by the Institute of Directors. The new Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Framework has been introduced in response to the ever-evolving policy, regulatory, macro-economic and governance environment in Ireland. It is designed to foster improved collective board strength and responsibility, the…

The European Commission has signed an administrative arrangement with the newly established media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, to support new EU online safety rules. The Digital Services Act (DSA) requires big tech firms to do more to police illegal and harmful content on their platforms. Ireland will play a leading role in enforcing the DSA,…

New research has found that 55% of office workers in companies in Dublin now spend two to three days on site each week. That marks a 7 percentage point increase since Dublin Chamber and Savills last measured the trend during the last three months of last year. The study found the increase has been driven…

The average cost of rebuilding a house rose by 12% over the last year, new research has found. That i’s less than the 21% rate of increase in the previous 12 months, the report by the Society of Chartered Surveyors in Ireland found. The rate of increase was broadly steady across the various regions of…

The Finance Bill, which puts the tax changes announced in last week’s Budget into legislation, has been published by the Minister for Finance, Michael McGrath. It runs to 270 pages and also includes changes to corporation tax rules to implement the so-called Pillar Two of the OECD tax reforms. Pillar Two refers to one part…

The European Central Bank took a further step today towards launching a digital version of the euro that would let people in the 20 countries that share the single currency make electronic payments free of charge and securely. “The next phase of the digital euro project – the preparation phase – will start on 1…

A report on Global Food Security will be presented to the UAE ambassador to Ireland by DCU’s Centre for Religion, Human Values and International Relations ahead of COP 28. The United Nations annual climate change conference, also known as the ‘Conference of the Parties’ or ‘COP’, brings together world leaders, ministers and negotiators to agree…