This article deals with the economic and social condition of the Republic of Ireland in the 1980s

The 1980s in the Republic of Ireland was one of the state's bleakest times. An extremely irresponsible budget by the majority Fianna Fail government in 1977, which included abolition of car tax and borrowing to fund current spending, combined with some global economic problems to ruin the Irish economy for most of the 1980s, causing high unemployment and mass emigration.

It is generally accepted that the Charles Haughey and Garret FitzGerald governments made this bad situation much worse with more massive borrowing and tax rates as high as 60% (with one Fine Gael finance minister suggesting people were not being taxed enough).

This was also an era of political instability and extreme political corruption, with power alternating between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, with some governments not even lasting a year, and in one case, three elections in one year.

The problems were eventually dealt with starting in 1989 with economic reform, tax cuts, welfare reform, more competition and a ban on borrowing to fund current spending. This policy was started by the 1989-1992 FF/PD government and continued by the subsequent FF/Lab government and FG/LAB/DL governments.

See also

• GUBU
• Timeline of Irish history