Brian Keegan: Sinn Féin and the Democrats both need a change in tax policy

Excessively taxing one particular cohort in society may be politically expedient, but it’s not a realistic long-term strategy

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald: even the most fashionable tax policy can go astray. Picture: Rollingnews.ie

Mary Lou McDonald and Joe Biden make strange bedfellows, but they share similar aspirations. The US president’s investment plans aspire to provide enhanced social supports for his country. So too does the alternative budget of McDonald’s party.

The Sinn Féin plan majors on affordable housing; so does Biden’s. Both feature enhanced childcare policies and proposals on climate change, and while these differ in detail the direction of travel is similar. In each case initiatives are ...