Premium
Colm McCarthy
Opinion
We may be all in this together, but some are in premium seats
If the first principle of economics is that resources are scarce, the first principle of politics is to pretend otherwise. Employment, and hence income for many households, has suffered severely from the pandemic, and there will be more pain, even in the best-case scenario. The Government has wisely let the deficit soar, to tide people over the emergency. But it has also loosened the purse strings generally, racking up long-term commitments which have nothing to do with Covid. The most recent example, a new pay round for the public service, is another mixed message: we are all in this together, but some have secured premium seats.