FOREIGN INVESTMENT, How Dependent have we Become of it?

[Armchair Activist]

There is no question Ireland has enjoyed a great deal of economic success over the past decade or so. A great deal of this success is owed to foreign investors such as Intel, Pfizer etc. However it has become evident that once the tax-breaks the company's receive expire or they realise they make an extra few million by relocating elsewhere they decide to shut down their factory's in Ireland and move their operations to developing countries in Africa or Asia.

This has a devastating effect on both the Irish economy and worst of all the people employed by the company.

So what can be done to prevent a continuation of this process without damaging the Irish economy?

Though I am sure the economist's would disagree, one solution I believe would be to nationalise high-tech manufacturing industries, to run it as business-like as possible with maximum profit in mind. The turnover would be used to benefit both the workers and government spending!

Bearing in mind communist states have operated with this function and poverty was the inevitable outcome, however these states were in reality more fascist-like than anything

[maceochaidh]

I believe that foreign nationals should not be allowed to own Irish land, industry, financial institution or commerce in Ireland.

They are a threat to the Irish nation.

[Universal_001]

Because protectionism worked so well before maceochaidh?
I'm unaware of any case where it has.

lesbehan the real question is Whats the alternative to relyin on FDI

In theory we can rely on native industry or non-manufacturing FDI (the often trumpeted "knowledge based economy).
In reality the first is doubtful and as for the second, were nowhere near close to it.

Before someone says we can rely on services, think carefully before you say it.

[FutureTaoiseach]

Nationalisation of the manufacturing industries is a bonkers idea that the country cannot afford without raising taxes through the roof. If it including nationalising the Irish operations of US companies, like in Cuba, it would inevitably invite US sanctions. No thanks.

It is a mistake to view our advantages over other locations for attracting investment solely from the tax-break and cost-of-labour perspective - however important that is. We enjoy other advantages too beside taxation e.g. an educated workforce, the English-language, less regulation of the labour-market relative to most of Western Europe, EMU membership and consequentially lower-interest rates than much of Eastern Europe, Irish-American part/ownership of many American multinationals e.g. Dell, Ford, etc. Also, some investors e.g. the pharmaceutical-industry are less concerned with labour-costs when making decisions on locating investment.

[Universal_001]

Nationalisation of the manufacturing industries is a bonkers idea that the country cannot afford without raising taxes through the roof. If it including nationalising the Irish operations of US companies, like in Cuba, it would inevitably invite US sanctions. No thanks.

Now FT your smarter than that.
There are other ways of raising capital besides raising taxes.

[Seos]

Nationalisation of the manufacturing industries is a bonkers idea that the country cannot afford without raising taxes through the roof. If it including nationalising the Irish operations of US companies, like in Cuba, it would inevitably invite US sanctions. No thanks.

Now FT your smarter than that.
There are other ways of raising capital besides raising taxes.

borrowing? Any other?


The trouble with nationalising factories is what would the operations manufacture if they're not allowed make what they are making now due to patents?

Now nationalising any research and development in this country would be a different story and it would certainly be able to do something. How much R&D is done here? If we had the R&D done correctly it would create both manufactoring jobs and an international reputation.

[Universal_001]

Nationalisation of the manufacturing industries is a bonkers idea that the country cannot afford without raising taxes through the roof. If it including nationalising the Irish operations of US companies, like in Cuba, it would inevitably invite US sanctions. No thanks.

Now FT your smarter than that.
There are other ways of raising capital besides raising taxes.

borrowing? Any other?
[

Thats how the private sector does it.
You can also use existing revenue, without raising extra taxes, but before you commit it to any specific area, in other words, save up the surplus and use that.

[Conor]

[quote=Universal_001]

Now FT your smarter than that.
There are other ways of raising capital besides raising taxes.

borrowing? Any other?

Thats how the private sector does it.[/quote:30nrrj1j]
The private sector isn't bound by the SGP.

[neoliberal]

First let us address this idea of nationalising(shudder as I write the word)the maunfactuing industry. So we think that by the state taking control of these jobs it some how safeguards them! The reason companies move is to earn the benefits of cheap labour, but this labour is in no way inferior or are the products that are produced from it. So we will have two products that are equal on the basis of quality but the irish on is dearer because we have to account somehow for highr labour costs. No nationalising won't work as it will only burden the state causing national debt to inrease.etc

The only way for ireland to maintain long term gwoth is throug technological innovation. That means spending money on eduaction, which attracts R+D,this keeps those lovely pharma jobs and in the long term will see the economy benefit.

We have to accept that in a globalised world ireland can not compete in the manufacturing sector for the long term. The innovation economy might not be here, but its the only real solution in the long run.

[Armchair Activist]

The trouble with nationalising factories is what would the operations manufacture if they're not allowed make what they are making now due to patents?

Now nationalising any research and development in this country would be a different story and it would certainly be able to do something. How much R&D is done here? If we had the R&D done correctly it would create both manufactoring jobs and an international reputation.

Yes, good point but the R&D sector would generate a little revenue as compared to manufacturing industries.

As I'm trying to create a notion of state enterprise been a major player in the business arena, without the great sums of profit going to the greedy Wall Street crowd and instead been used for public spending by the government and for the benefit of the employee's.

A prime example of how this has worked is the way in which the Norwegian government has handled its fossil fuel resources. Instead of selling out to private corporations it remained a national asset. However Des O Malley sold out Ireland’s natural resources for several thousand pounds, a resource that we now know to be worth billions of euro!