Summary of ideas submitted in the All island economy category…

• Introduce integrated bus, Luas and Dart tickets to speed up public journey times.
• Introduce links, markets and fairs, between the sale of local produce and organised religion.
• Introduce Local Lotteries where most of the money raised goes back into the local community
• Introduce strict controls on salaries with all salaries defined as a multiple of the average industrial wage capped at 10.
• Introduce tax credits for any person who creates a job opportunity within the next five years Any Irish citizen resident outside the state should pay taxes in this country.
• Introduction of 100% taxation on those earning over 100k
• Invest in educational programmes to train the unemployed in innovative technologies
• Invest in green energy infrastructure
• Invest in hydro-electric power stations.
• Invest money in promoting Ireland in a positive light internationally.
• Ireland should consider exiting from the Eurozone.
• Irish companies should manufacture a certain percentage of the goods that the Government currently sources abroad. This would ensure employment and money remains in Ireland
• Launch ’spring clean weekends’ for communities to come together and clean the public and private areas of their communities that need cleaning.
• Launch a clear jobs strategy
• Launch a coordinated strategy to drive tourism in Ireland. Every county should have tourism targets, strategy and an action plan
• Launch a job surrender scheme for those with less than 10 years to retirement age give up their jobs with the proviso that they can’t sign on the live register or take up other employment for a minimum of 5 years unless their circumstances change.
• Launch a state-backed voucher scheme to encourage the purchase of Irish-made goods.
• Launch an import substitution policy where products are sourced domestically rather than from overseas.
• Let the banks clean up their own mess or else fail.
• Let the banks fail.
• Link Irish civil service salaries to the same levels as the EU average.
• Local community halls could be used to provide childminding facilities and people in the community should pull together to help one another
• Lower taxes and encourage private investment in infrastructure.
• Lower taxes; cut the public service in half; reduce public sector and government salaries; control inflation.
• Make government bonds compulsory purchases for domestic companies
• Make it illegal for companies who operate in Northern and Southern Ireland to charge different prices for their good in the two locations. This will keep money in the Irish economy.
• Make Michael O’Leary Taoiseach
• Make some of the estimated €7billion deposited in Credit Unions available in loans to the SME sector. The state should guarantee a rate of interest on the funds equivalent to the external cost of funds to the state.
• Market Ireland as THE destination for ‘green’ holidays.
• Merge government bodies north and south that have common goals.
• Mortgage lenders should offer all mortgage holders the option of a two-month repayment holiday at any time over the next 18 months.
• Organise a free show for budding entrepreneurs and invite banks and franchisors
• Pay cuts in civil service and banks backed by the Government
• People should be encouraged to live closer to either their place of employment or a relative in need of care
• People who are buying a new house should be given a Stamp Duty credit if they bought a house in the previous five years.