Brian O’Boyle is the author, with Kieran Allen, of Tax Haven Ireland, Durkheim: A Critical Introduction, and Austerity Ireland. He lectures in economics at St Angela College, National University of Ireland, Galway, and is editor of the Irish Marxist Review.
Last month, the European Court of Justice issued one of the biggest tax rulings in history, forcing Apple to pay €13 billion to Ireland. But firms like Apple have already teamed up with Irish government officials to devise new ways of avoiding taxes.
The Irish establishment has built one of the world’s most successful tax havens. This economic model has produced spectacular headline figures for GDP growth, but most Irish workers aren’t seeing the benefits in terms of wages and living standards.
Plato developed his philosophy in ancient Greece during an early experiment in democratic government that threatened the power of his class. He responded with an argument for rule by aristocratic elites that has appealed to conservatives ever since.