Sinn Féin spokesperson on Finance Pearse Doherty TD has described today’s CSO release on County Incomes and Regional GDP as “an indictment of Fine Gael’s economic policy over the last decade”, with regional inequalities deepening.

The CSO found that disposable income as a proportion of the State average had fallen in the Border, West, Midlands, South East and South West regions since Fine Gael came to power.

In Donegal, for example, disposable income per person has stagnated in the past decade at 22 percent below the State average, while it had actually fallen in Cavan, Leitrim, Galway, Roscommon, Laois, Longford, Offaly, West Meath and Wexford.

Speaking today, Teachta Doherty said:

“We have become accustomed to Fine Gael patronising the public that they have witnessed an economic boom under their watch over the past decade.

“That myth was exposed last month when a study published by the Central Bank and authored by its former Governor found that the economic welfare of Irish workers and families fell below the European average.

“Figures released today by the CSO show that regional inequality has deepened in the past decade, with disposable income actually falling in many counties.

“For example, disposable income in Donegal has stagnated in the past decade, with household income now 22 percent lower than the State average.

“Border counties have seen disposable income fall from 90 percent of the State average to 82 percent.

“Despite Fine Gael boasting of economic recovery, many counties actually saw disposable income fall between 2009 and 2018.

“That is a shocking fact.

“Today’s release by the CSO not only reveals Fine Gael’s failure to deliver a balanced recovery but underlines the need to do things differently in the future.”