Above: Trade in services as a percentage of GDP in selected countries and a second graph showing exports of goods and services as a percentage of GDP.

Aidan Regan unpacks the official EU narrative which maintains that Ireland’s economic recovery is as a result of austerity.

Actually, this couldn’t be further from the truth:

“In reality, the Irish recovery has nothing to do with austerity induced cost competitiveness and everything to do with a State-led enterprise policy to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) from the United States.”

Whether one likes it or not, the core policy shaping economic recovery in Ireland is the outcome an embedded relationship between the public sector and large foreign owned global tech firms. This deeply embedded role for the state in the international market underpins Ireland’s capacity to make the transition to export-led growth in internationally traded services, rather than austerity, declining labour costs or macroeconomic stabilisation.”

Somebody buy that man two pints.

You can read the full post over at the London School of Economics blog here.