The Action Plan for Jobs has to rank as one of the most successful policy programmes in the history of the state.But its replacement, FutureJobs Ireland, is a much more ambitious strategy.

Jobs, jobs, jobs. But what kinds of jobs?

Ireland is at, or near, the top of an economic cycle. Compare Ireland in 2019 to Ireland in 2012. In 2012, the unemployment rate was 16 per cent. Almost 50,000 people emigrated that year. In 2019, the unemployment rate is 5.6 per cent, the migration trend has reversed, and 2.28 million people are working, the most ever. Inflation is stable. House prices are falling in the ...