Productivity in the two Irelands (extrapolate this)

Of the 17 sectors for which we have comparable data, productivity levels in Ireland noticeably exceed those of Northern Ireland in 14 sectors, with particularly large gaps in Administrative and support services activities;
Financial and insurance activities; Legal and accounting activities etc; and Scientific research and development. Northern Ireland has an advantage in the two sectors of Electricity and gas supply and Construction.

Productivity levels in the two regions were broadly equivalent in 2000. Over the period 2001 to 2020, productivity levels in Ireland have trended slightly upwards, while in Northern Ireland productivity levels have been trending downwards. By 2020, productivity per worker was approximately 40 per cent higher in Ireland compared to Northern Ireland.

That is from a new study by Adele Bergin and Seamus McGuinness, via Charles Klingman.  Of the seventeen sectors for which there are comparable data: ” Northern Ireland has an advantage in the two sectors of Electricity and gas supply and Construction.”  And from commentator David Jordan note this: “As the authors conclude, the failure of Northern Ireland’s economy to respond positively to increases in education, investment, and export intensity, suggests that other barriers to productivity growth exist.”