Professor Stephen Kinsella from the University of Limerick is poised to serve as an economic consultant to Taoiseach Simon Harris. His acceptance for the role should be sealed by the end of the week, with plans to fulfil the duties part-time so as not to interfere with his responsibilities at the university.
The Irish Times hinted at this appointment prior to Harris formally assuming the role of Taoiseach in March, but it took a few weeks for all parties involved to come to a consensus. Kinsella, who was born in Dublin and heads the Department of Economics at the University of Limerick, is predicted to replicate the part-time advisory role that Prof. Alan Ahearne performed for Micheál Martin, the Tánaiste. Kinsella’s input will become more prominent during key moments in the fiscal year like the Summer Economic Statement and Autumn budget.
As a respected journalist, Kinsella has written for the Irish Independent and the Sunday Business Post, and currently serves as the chief economics writer for The Currency, an online publisher. During his stint in government, he will likely reduce his journalistic output. His words have also graced the pages of international publications like The Guardian and The New York Times.
There was speculation that the role might fall to Prof. John McHale, the previous chair of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council. Presently, Kinsella participates in the Artificial Intelligence Advisory Council and leads the external advisory board for the Government’s Economic Evaluation Service. He also sits on the Parliamentary Budget Office external advisory board.
Between 2020 and 2021, Kinsella was part of the research subgroup of the Expert Advisory Group of the National Public Health Emergency Team and served on the Higher Education Authority board from 2014 until 2017.