Taking Stock With Vincent Wall

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston talks to journalist Jeff Maysh about the strange story of what happened when he went to be buy his wife a Rolex Watch. Mandy also chats to Former Diplomat Ted Smyth about why Ireland can't take the special relationship between Ireland and the US for granted. Plus Marian Ryan on Taxback tells us about all you should be claiming back.

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston talks to Federica Taccogna an International Anti-Financial Crime expert about taking down the Mob and why Financial Crime is so widespread. Mandy asks leading Economist Cormac Lucey if Ireland, Europe or the US are headed for a recession in 2023? Plus the Tourism Industry Confederation CEO will be joining Mandy to explain why he thinks the sector will not fully recover from the pandemic until 2026!

There's a Special Taking Stock this week when Mandy Johnston talks to some of her regular contributors about the best business and politics books they read this year. You'll hear from the likes of Mick Clifford and Will Hutton. You might get some last minute gift ideas for the news-obsessed person in your life.

The bounce back from Covid lockdowns is over. Growth is slowing and we can’t rule out a recession here in Ireland. But it is not showing up in the exchequer figures, with an extraordinary surplus of €12 billion reported for the first 11 months of the year last week. This week on Taking Stock Mandy chats Dan O Brien, Chief Economist for the Institute of International and European Affairs and columnist for the Sunday Business Post about why despite being awash with cash, the Government needs to tread carefully. And so too do CEO’s navigating business in these uncertain times – Mandy will be asking Leadership and Human Behaviour Expert Jodie Rodgers, about some of the alternative ways that business leaders are getting through these challenging times. And finally, with all the buzz about drones this Christmas, if you are lucky enough to get one of these winged wonders, what are you required to do legally to make sure you are protected? Mandy chats to an industry expert to tell you all the does and don'ts for y

A UK Supreme Court has ruled that the Scottish government does not have the legal authority to hold an independence referendum without agreement from Westminster and this week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston is joined by Minister Ivan McKee of the SNP who is Minister for Business, Trade, Tourism and Enterprise in Scotland This week saw unprecedented protests against President Xi Jinping and his zero-Covid policy in China. Mandy talks to Cindy Yu the Assistant Editor at The Spectator and she will tells us what lies beneath the uprising. And finally, a new study shows that over 600,000 people who are living with a disability in Ireland are unable to access services online. Mandy talks to a man with a solution.

He’s the man with a plan to halt Donald Trump's bid for re-election – but who is Ron DeSantis? This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston talks to Bernd Debusmann Jr who is a BBC journalist based in Washington to talk about DeSantis the man, his mission and his meteoric rise within the Republican Party. And the man with no plan at all - Sam Bankman Fried, the owner of collapsed crypto exchange FTX. is facing multiple charges of company fraud in the US. Mandy talks to the Financial Times journalist Joshua Oliver about the extraordinary rise and fall of yet another Tech Messiah. And finally what’s your plan to deal with new pension regulations that are set to kick in for business in just five short weeks? Pensions expert Mairead O'Mahony who is Head of Wealth Solutions with Aon Ireland has some advice on how to prepare.

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston look at the historic nature of the mid-term reshuffle which is due to take place here in Ireland next month and takes a deep diver into the Government; how it was formed, how it has performed and what is likely to happen when the changes are made by Micheál Martin and Leo Varadkar. They’ll be switching places as they try to deal with everything that entails including a cost of living, energy and housing crisis. Mandy is joined by three experts who watch politics here in Ireland to give us all their views on what lies ahead for the new administration. And Mandy takes an alternative looks at the sector by speaking to one of the Approved Housing Bodies ‘Circle Voluntary Housing Association’ and hears about how the profile of the people needing this type of assistance has changed radically in recent years.

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston looks our eating and travel habits post pandemic, because we have gone back to both with great gusto. Ryanair this week reported pre-tax profit of €1.4bn for the six months of the year. How did it recover so well and what are its plans for the future? Mandy chats Sean Keyes of the Currency about the secret of Ryanair’s success. Back on the ground here in Ireland, how we eat and when we eat has changed, and we hear from Maureen Gahan of Bord Bia about our new post pandemic dining-out habits And Former president Donal Trump is expected to declare his candidacy, but he will do so under investigation for everything from his handling of top-secret documents to the price tag placed on his New York penthouse. Joe Miller from the Financial Times in New York talks us through the big legal battles ahead for Mr Trump and his Business Empire

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston is joined from Washington by Financial Times Journalist Lauren Fedor to talk about how the US midterms will the first referendum on Joe Biden's administration and they will also reveal the level of support for Trump style politics in the Republican party. Raging against his own machine; Elon Musk finally takes the helm, the Board and the kitchen sink at Twitter. Digital Cultural Expert Chis Stokel-Walker joins Mandy from London with his take on what’s going on behind the scenes at Planet Musk. Plus Irelands forestry Industry could provide the Government with significant reductions in our carbon emissions and also provide a lucrative alternative for Irish Farmers. Professor Cathal O'Donoghue from Galway University talks to Mandy about his in-depth study into the economics of Irish Afforestation.

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston is joined by former Justice Minister Nora Owen and by Caitríona Gleeson, CEO of Women For Election to look at the issue of Quotas on election ballots and ask if the landscape for prospective female politicians has changed. Mandy also chats to Sports Columnist with the Examiner Ian Mallon about the commercial and sponsorship value of Women's Soccer in Ireland. And with the appointment of Rishi Sunak as UK Prime Minister Mandy is joined by renowned political economist Will Hutton to assess where UK politics goes now.

This week’s Taking Stock is coming to you from the IBEC HR Leadership Summit at Croke Park sponsored by Irish life health. Irish companies are hiring on all cylinders and Mandy Johnston talks to some of the HR leaders and their central role in strategically driving their business forward. You’ll hear from Maeve McElwee who is director of Employee Relations at IBEC about the main issues facing HR post Covid. The CEO of the Laura Lynn Foundation Kerry McLaverty talks about how HR has changed in the charity sector. Plus Megan Reitz from Hult Business School on staff feeling psychological ‘safe’ in the workplace.

The IMF warned this week that 2023 will feel like a recession as it cuts global growth forecasts for the fourth time this year. This Week on Taking Stock Mandy talks to Economist Jim Power who helps to decipher what it means for us here in Ireland. Pennies from Heaven; the halo effect that a Penny’s store can bring with it. Sunday Times journalist Linda Daly had done a deep dive and she joins Mandy to tell all. Clothes Shopping used to be an occasional event but that has changed dramatically in the last 20 years. Mandy is joined by Maeve Galvin who is Global Campaigns and Policy Director at Fashion Revolution, and manages the Good Clothes, Fair Pay Campaign.

This week on Taking Stock Mandy chat to Award-Winning journalist Marina Hyde about her new book ‘What Just Happened’ which reflects on her writings over the last number of years during which time she charts the incredible times in UK history. Government this week published a master plan to overhaul An Board Pleanála – but exactly how does the agency work and who are people making major decisions about the pace of building houses and key infrastructure in Ireland? Mick Clifford of the Irish Examiner joins Mandy to explain all. Staff retention has become a significant issue for lots of employers, putting the workforce in the driving seat for the first time, Mandy chats to Mary Connaughton of CIPD about what’s happening and the best approach to take to keep your staff onside.

This week the “cost of living budget” doled out a record breaking 11 Billion. This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston talks macro and micro taxation with Cliff Taylor of the Irish Times and Marian Ryan, Consumer Tax Manager with Taxback Across the water the UK Budget received a scathing review from the IMF and calls for a rethink to its 45Billion pound debt funded tax package, Sir John Curtice, Professor of Politics at the University of Strathclyde is here to unpick the political and economic implications for the Liz Truss Government. And when it comes to housing did the Government do enough to get the supply side moving? AJ Noonan Managing Director of the Rhonellen Group and former Chair of the SFA gives us his take on Budget 2023 from a construction perspective.

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston asks if the United Kingdom can survive the death of Queen Elizabeth? She talks to the renowned Will Hutton of the Observer and the Guardian Big Pharma took a big hit on the stock market as US President Joe Biden declared the end of the pandemic. Mandy talks to Jamie Smyth of the Financial Times in New York to hear how it all affected the Stock Exchange And drama is guaranteed as the Italians head to the polls. Mandy examines if this could be the first time since World War II that Italy's next leader could come from the far right.

Flat packing its way to billions, Ikea’s journey in Ireland has been a lucrative one for the company, and on this week’s Taking Stock Mandy Johnston looks at why they are doing so well out of Ireland’s generous tax landscape and is joined by Thomas Hubert of The Currency Jackie King, Executive Director International Business of IBEC joins Mandy to give us her take on how our business leaders are coping with geopolitical difficulties and what IBEC want to see from Budget 2023 Plus it seems there’s no end in sight to grocery inflation as the rate at which food and drink prices are increasing continues to accelerate in the UK and are we going in the same direction here in Ireland? Mandy chats to Larry Elliot of the Guardian and Mark Paul of the Irish Times

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston looks at the phenomena of “quiet quitting” where workers do less while still keeping their jobs. She chats to HR expert Caroline Reidy of the HR Suite. As the EU takes on the challenge of cleaning up the internet to make it safer for us all, Financial Times journalist Javier Ezpinoza takes us through the efforts being made by the big platforms to stave off more EU regulations. And why is Germany the barometer of the European project and are its current woes indicative of what countries are facing all over Europe? Mandy talks to John Kampfner the author of ‘Why the Germans Do it Better; Notes from a Grown-Up Country’

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston is joined by the author and financial journalist Philip Coggan who has just written a new book called Surviving the Daily Grind’ and he’ll give us all the tips on how to get through your working week. Twitter is back in the headlines as a whistle-blower emerges and Elon Musk is still creating impossible levels of drama for the company. Mandy talks to the technology correspondent with the Guardian Kari Paul Comeback Kings – Dara Calleary is back in Government. But who else has made it back from the political wilderness in Irish politics? Journalist John Downing chats some of the great comebacks.

This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnston analyses what was left in the wake of the departure of Ulster Bank and KBC and is joined by Sean Keyes from the Currency who takes a deep-dive into the state of Ireland’s Banking Sector. As Dublin Airport opened its third runway The Shannon Airport Group had a big rebrand this week and Mandy talks to CEO Mary Considine about the possibility for Shannon in a post-Covid economy Hope or hype? This week the Tánaiste said it will be about a decade before Hydrogen energy is a fuel source in Ireland. Mandy is joined by Hydrogen Ireland to give us their view on how long it will be before expectations meet reality

How does a novel set in 1860s, and published in the 1930s relate to America in 2022? This week on Taking Stock Mandy Johnson talks to author Sarah Churchwell about her new book ‘The Wrath to Come’ which looks at the mythmaking that sprung up following the Civil War right through to the current debates about racism and the far right in the United States. Just how many people find feedback in the workplace helpful, and does it work? Mandy talks to The Deputy Editor of the Financial Times Magazine, Esther Bintliff. And Mandy chats to Tax Expert Marian Ryan of 'Taxback' about what a new 30% Tax Band would mean for people and politics.