Some Missing Links in Ireland’s Initial National Well-Being Framework

Abstract

Ireland’s first national well-being framework was announced in late 2021. This study offers a systematic review concerning two key missing links whose omission weakens the framework’s coherence. The first is the lack of clarity surrounding the concept of sustainable development leading to potential confusion between the trade-offs surrounding well-being today and sustained well-being into the future. The second is a lack of regional integration that threatens to distort policy choices regarding regional development. Considerations for the future development of the national well-being framework are presented through an amended dashboard, a suite of suggested indicators at a more disaggregated regional level that intersects relevant well-being themes and a practical policy application of an amended framework to the monitoring of the goals of the National Planning Framework.