TEELING URGES AN END TO AUSTERITY - One of the most toasted business people last year was John Teeling who, after years of hard work building the brand, managed to sell Cooley Distillery in Co Louth for €70m and make himself an estimated €25m fortune in the process. Cooley is behind the Kilbeggan and Tyrconnell brands amongst others. This morning he is taking a much more public position on the economy in an address to the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in Dublin. He will tell the gathered crowd that austerity is not working, that the middle classes are in danger of being destroyed; and that €80 billion worth of our debt needs to be deferred and replaced with the creation of what he is calling "Noonan bonds''.
Mr Teeling states that austerity has never worked in any country or during any time in history. He says the Government can not continue to take money out of the economy, continue to raise taxes and to cut benefits and still expect demand to grow. He says this way of thinking will only lead to great stress and strain and may eventually even result in civil unrest.
The businessman says the first thing the Government should do is restructure our too high debt levels. He says that we should defer paying the next €80 billion and not pay anything for the next six years - similar to what has happened in Greece. He says Ireland should adopt ''Noonan Bonds'' like the ''Brady Bonds'' in the 1980s in South America. We should pay nothing until we get back on our feet, he stresses.
Mr Teeling says his views are shared by many business people, who are saying similar things both publicly and privately. He also says that he hopes to invest some of all of his profits from the Cooley deal back into Ireland.
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MORNING BRIEFS - UTV Media has reported record pre-tax profits for the year to December 2011 despite the testing economic environment. The broadcaster said that pre-tax profits rose by 10% to £23.3m from £21.3m while group revenues increased by 2% to £121.6m from £118.9m.
*** Apple says it will spend part of its massive $100 billion cash hoard to pay a dividend to shareholders and buy back $10 billion in shares. Apple said it would pay a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share from its huge cash balance - the first time it has paid a dividend since 1995. The dividend payment would start with the company's 2012 fourth financial quarter, which begins on July 1, Apple said in a statement. The $10 billion share buyback will begin in its next financial year, which starts on September 30. Apple said it expected the repurchase programme to be executed over three years.
*** Enterprise Ireland backed Nualight has signed an alliance with America's Hussmann. The deal exposes Nualight to a market worth around $100m. Nualight is involved in LED lighting specialising in food retailing lighting. Hussmann makes refrigeration units for US food retailers. The deal is a major advancement in Nualight's quest for global reach.
*** A Small Firms Association survey of members - to which just over 700 participated - says 57% of companies had seen an increase in crime against them in the last two years. The average cost per incident is $4,500 and 40% were victims in on three or more occasions.
*** On the currency markets, the euro is worth $1.3231 US cents and 83.39 pence sterling.
