One of the most striking forecasts is the rise in demand for cars. It may not seem like it driving into Dublin at 8 a.m., but car ownership here per employee is still well below the EU average. There are now around 0.82 cars per person in employment, up from 0.67 in 1987 and this could reach one car per employee by 2006. Allied to the increasing numbers in work, this means that the motor trade will be a good place to be over the next decade. NCB predicts that 60,000 additional cars will be on the road each year meaning around 100,000 new registrations a year bringing the car population from just over 1 million in 1996 to more than 1.6 million in 2006.

If anything, NCB warns that these forecasts may be on the low side, and if we reach German car-ownership levels, then 1.8 million cars could be on the road by 2006. The implications of this for road infrastructure are obvious.

Planes and trains are also set to boom alongside automobiles driven both by the rising population and the increased amounts of money people have to spare for discretionary spending.