Professor Terrence McDonough:

One would have to ask whether some of the immediate contributors to the storm had been dealt with. High levels of inequality and debt persist. We have been very slow to take aggressive actions to reduce debt levels. In this morning's newspaper the EU is reported as raising the issue, although it is somewhat ironic in that some of the debt is due to EU policy. We have moved from a low-tax regime and have not been able to restore productive investment, rather than financial activity, in the Irish economy.