Energy: Dalkia-achieving sustainable efficiency
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011Tony Doherty explores the issues at stake for public establishments striving to achieve sustainable energy efficiency. Public facilities have long since recognised the critical role that providing a comfortable environment plays, by maintaining appropriate levels of heating, cooling, lighting and air quality within buildings – from hospitals to schools and government offices. At the same time, growing budgetary pressures and rising prices are putting a focus on reducing the cost of providing these services. These cost and efficiency drivers necessitate the delivery of more energy services...[full story]
Finance: Autumn Statement-regional impact
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011More capital spending and extra support for business are the main positives from the autumn statement but further cuts are expected in public service budgets. Northern Ireland is to receive an extra £142 million (including £134 million for capital projects) up to 2015 following the Chancellor’s autumn statement but may lose £150 million in current expenditure. Those reductions are expected in Barnett consequentials i.e. cuts in UK Government departments being matched by the Executive. The whole UK is expected to experience lower growth in 2012 (0.7 per cent) with the Government borrowing...[full story]
Finance: Robert Chote-forecasting ahead
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011Office for Budget Responsibility Chairman Robert Chote explains its forecasting approach to Peter Cheney and how corporation tax devolution would expand its remit. Whatever you think of its estimates, the Office for Budget Responsibility has established its independence as a professional forecaster, according to Robert Chote. agendaNi spoke to him at the Northern Ireland Economic Conference on the first anniversary of his appointment. “The key thing we needed to do on arrival,” he stated, “was to establish the reputation of the OBR as a source of rigorous, well-explained coherent...[full story]
Draft Programme for Government: Economy
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011While still keeping the economy as first priority, the draft Programme for Government offers few radical solutions for the province’s problems. As expected, the economy is described as the Executive’s first priority but its aims are considerably less ambitious than before. This reflects the recession but also the risk-averse influence of the Civil Service. Closing the productivity gap with Great Britain (a major goal for decades) is not set as a firm target. The previous programme aimed to halve the difference with the UK average (excluding South East England) by 2015. Instead, the...[full story]
Economy: Patrick Love-Triple A shocks
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011The causes of the Great Recession risk being repeated, Patrick Love contends, as he reviews the downturn. Globalisation multiplies the effect of new shocks in a way never seen previously. Financial crises and recessions are nothing unusual. There were 195 stock market crashes and 84 depressions between 1860 and 2006. However, the 2007 crisis marks a turning point in that for the first time the entire world was affected. The trigger was the collapse of Lehmans, which called into question one of the unspoken assumptions of global finance: some banks are too big to fail. This assumption...[full story]
Energy: EST-times are changing
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011EST has operated in Northern Ireland for the past 15 years and is best known for the provision of free and impartial energy saving advice to householders, communities and energy-related business. Patrick Thompson explains the way ahead. Briefly outline EST’s current work in Northern Ireland: We provide free and impartial energy saving advice to around 50,000 householders in Northern Ireland each year. In the face of rising fuel prices and last year’s cold winter, the provision of advice and information on the smaller ‘behaviour changes’ is as essential as insulation and helps...[full story]
Innovation: R&D in Northern Ireland
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011Northern Ireland needs to fight for European funding to fast-track its R&D performance and catch up with competing regions. The province cannot afford to lag behind in innovation. While the Republic has drawn down €290 million from Europe’s key innovation programme, Northern Ireland’s applications total just €30 million. That gap is an urgent wake-up call for the Executive to promote the region’s R&D, especially as the Seventh Framework Programme finishes in 2013. Statistics for 2010 make clear that business leads the way in local innovation. The private sector spent...[full story]
Innovation: Manu-services
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011Combining goods and services into packages is vital for UK manufacturing’s future success, according to the Work Foundation’s Andrew Sissons. He explains ‘manu-services’ to agendaNi. UK manufacturers can create a global edge by backing up their products with high quality support services, according to Work Foundation author Andrew Sissons. The trend, known as manu-services, was the subject of his ‘More than making things’ report, which he launched in March. Manufacturing is essential for rebalancing the economy and closing the strategic trade gap but the UK is slipping back...[full story]
Innovation: Invest NI-driving innovation to boost business
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011Invest NI’s plans to support business R&D. The most recently published figures show that Northern Ireland expenditure on research and development in 2010 was the highest ever, with spending by businesses increasing by 6 per cent on the previous year to £344 million, with spend by locally owned companies up 27 per cent to £109.9 million in 2010. Businesses very clearly recognise the value of investing in new products and processes to keep ahead of the competition and strengthen their long-term position. In the first half of this year, Invest Northern Ireland made 70 offers to businesses...[full story]
