The Economic and Social Research Institute has forecast that 300,000 Irish jobs will be wiped out before the end of the next year as the recession deepens. It also expects that the rate of unemployment will average 17% in 2010.
Live Register almost doubles in year
In its most downbeat economic assessment, the ESRI also expects that by the end of next year living standards here will be 15% lower than in 2007.
The ESRI's latest quarterly economic commentary says what is in store for Ireland is the largest contraction any developed economy has suffered since at least the 1930s, combined with soaring unemployment.
The report says economic output will shrink by a massive 9.2% this year, and that by the end of next year national income per person will be 15.6% lower than in 2007.
This contraction in the economy is significantly bigger than the Government assumed in the Budget. If it is correct, the report says, the Government will lose an additional €1.3 billion in tax receipts this year.
The result will be an even greater deterioration in the public finances than predicted in the Budget only three weeks ago.
The human cost, according to the ESRI, will be enormous, with employment falling by 187,500 this year, followed by another 103,000 next year.
The ESRI says it is fearful that any further rises in income taxes will make it harder for employers to achieve wage cuts, which it says are vital to restoring the overall competitiveness of the economy.
