New Industry Input Linkages in Ireland: An Econometric Analysis

This paper analyses the input linkages of manufacturing projects in Ireland which have been grant-aided under the New Industries programme. The Hirschman concept of linkages is adopted and the propensity of individual enterprises to purchase inputs is analysed at two spatial scales: (a) the national economy; and (b) the local area within a twenty-mile radius of the plant. Econometric methods are used to test a series of hypotheses at plant level, and implications for industrial and regional policies are discussed.