Closer to home, Ireland’s household and public debt levels, which are key indicators of the economy’s resilience to shocks remain very elevated (Irish households are the fourth most indebted in the European Unionxxiii). This level of debt clearly increases the vulnerabilities to shocks (including interest rate risk) and limits authorities’ policy options for dealing with them in a counter cyclical way.
5  See, for example, William C. Dudley’s speech entitled “The Outlook, Policy Choices and Our Mandate,” given at the Society of American Business Editors and Writers Fall Conference at the City University of New York on October 1, 2010.