Socio-Economic Rights & Budget Analysis: Some Notes on Available Resources, ‘Progressivity’ and Non-Retrogression

Abstract

Structural adjustment and austerity have been implemented in recent years in Ireland in keeping with right-wing thinking, coming in the form of a 2:1 ratio of cuts in services to tax increases (themselves often regressive in nature). Levels of poverty and inequality have deepened. Socio-economic protections have been resolutely subordinated by the state’s loyalty to financial institutions and the imperatives of transnational capital. There has been no departure from the race to the bottom for foreign investment in which Ireland is engaged, with the diversion of resources to corporate tax reduction measures continuing in various guises.

In the face of such market hegemony, what can international human rights discourse offer when it comes to social justice advocacy and budget analysis?

Keywords: socio-economic rights; budget analysis

JEL Classification: K33