Cyprus has just reported a €1.61 billion government surplus, its finances are looking remarkably healthy and international investment continues to bring money into the economy. There is plenty to celebrate. But before anyone gets too carried away with the numbers, Ireland offers an uncomfortable reminder that a wealthy country and a prosperous population are not necessarily the same thing.

Across the Irish Sea, a government expecting a surplus of €9.5bn in 2027 is discovering that collecting billions from some of the world’s richest companies is considerably easier than ensuring ordinary people can afford a decent home.

That contradiction is at the heart of a new Financial Times (FT) investigation, published this week, examining why one of Europe’s wealthiest economies still struggles with housing, infrastructure, healthcare and the cost of everyday life.

For Cyprus, which has spent years attracting foreign investment and building its international business sector, the Irish experience deserves closer attention.

Ireland’s economic transformation has been extraordinary. Apple, Microsoft, Google, Pfizer and Eli Lilly are among the multinational giants that have established substantial operations there, bringing investment, highly paid employment and enormous tax receipts.

The results are striking. According to Ireland’s Central Statistics Office, GDP reached €602.4bn in 2025, more than double the figure recorded a decade earlier.

There is, though, a rather important qualification. Ireland’s modified gross national income, known as GNI, was considerably smaller, at €334bn.

The measure was developed to remove particular distortions associated with multinational activity, including intellectual property and international profits, which can make conventional GDP a misleading guide to the domestic economy.

The difference amounts to more than €268bn.

And the contrast becomes more revealing when measured against what people actually consume. According to Eurostat, Ireland’s GDP per person, adjusted for purchasing power, stood at 238 per cent of the EU average in 2025, making it one of the bloc’s wealthiest economies on paper.

Its actual individual consumption, a measure that better reflects the goods and services available to households, was just 100 per cent of the EU average.

Cyprus, interestingly, stood at 98 per cent.

In other words, the enormous difference between the two countries’ GDP figures bears little resemblance to the gap in household consumption.

That does not mean Ireland’s prosperity is imaginary. Its businesses, jobs and tax revenues are real. But the figures expose the limits of judging a country’s success by the size of its economy.

And outside Ireland’s impressive corporate offices, life is proving rather expensive.

Eurostat figures show that Irish household consumption prices were 36 per cent above the EU average in 2025, the second-highest level in the bloc after Denmark.

Housing-related price levels, including utilities, were an extraordinary 90 per cent above the European average.

The country’s housing shortage has become one of its most serious problems, with younger workers struggling to buy homes and rents placing considerable pressure on household budgets.

In August, 17,885 people were living in emergency accommodation, including 5,830 children, according to figures released by Ireland’s Department of Housing in September.

Those numbers make uncomfortable reading alongside the country’s financial success.

The problem extends beyond housing. Ireland’s growing population and expanding economy have put considerable pressure on electricity networks, water supplies, public transport and healthcare.

As the FT investigation explains, even when the government has the money to invest, getting major projects built has proved frustratingly difficult.

Dublin’s long-planned underground railway illustrates the problem. Plans for a metro have been discussed for decades, with estimated costs reaching as much as €17.5bn.

A new national children’s hospital has also suffered repeated delays and substantial cost overruns.

Money, it turns out, cannot build infrastructure that remains stuck in planning, legal disputes or construction difficulties.

And the country’s financial success comes with another complication. Ireland has become heavily dependent on a remarkably small number of corporate taxpayers.

Research published in February by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council found that just three corporate groups accounted for 46 per cent of corporation tax receipts in 2024, equivalent to approximately €13bn.

The companies are widely understood to be Apple, Microsoft and pharmaceutical group Eli Lilly, whose contribution reflects the enormous profits generated by their international operations.

Apple alone was reported by the FT to have paid $17bn in Irish corporation tax in its latest financial year, with receipts influenced by the aftermath of the European court ruling concerning its historic tax arrangements.

For a government, such payments are extremely welcome. Depending on them to finance increasingly expensive public services is another matter.

Ireland expects corporation tax receipts to reach €34.1bn in 2026 and €39.1bn in 2027.

But the apparent strength of its finances hides a vulnerability. According to the country’s October fiscal forecasts, removing corporation tax receipts considered potentially temporary would turn the projected €9.5bn surplus in 2027 into an underlying deficit of €13.4bn.

That is quite a difference. The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council has repeatedly warned that government spending is growing faster than the economy can sustainably support.

In its fiscal risk analysis, the watchdog emphasised the dangers of relying on a handful of multinational businesses whose profits depend on international markets, changing tax rules and commercial decisions made outside Ireland.

And those risks are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore as technology companies invest heavily in artificial intelligence and pharmaceutical manufacturers face uncertainty over American trade and drug-pricing policies.

Ireland has responded by establishing two long-term investment funds, designed to save part of its corporate tax windfall and help finance future public spending.

The Future Ireland Fund cannot be drawn upon until 2041, while the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund provides resources for future economic difficulties and environmental investment.

Together, the funds held approximately €20bn at the end of June 2026.

It is an attempt to ensure that at least some of today’s extraordinary revenue remains available when corporate fortunes are less favourable.

The difficulty is deciding how much to save when housing, transport, healthcare and energy infrastructure already require considerable investment.

And that brings the discussion back to Cyprus.

The island’s own fiscal performance is impressive.

According to figures released on Tuesday, Cyprus recorded a €1.61bn general government surplus in the first nine months of 2026, equivalent to 4 per cent of GDP.

That compares with €1.17bn, or 3 per cent of GDP, during the corresponding period last year.

Government revenue increased by 6.5 per cent to €12.09bn, supported by stronger income tax receipts, social contributions and VAT.

The country’s expanding technology, financial and professional services industries have also helped broaden its economic base, bringing international businesses, skilled workers and investment.

But the economic figures look rather different when examined from the perspective of an ordinary employee.

According to Cystat, average gross monthly earnings reached €2,591 in 2025.

The median, which better represents the middle of the earnings distribution, stood at just €1,953.

And the differences between industries are considerable. Financial and insurance activities recorded average monthly earnings of €5,038, compared with €1,649 in accommodation and food services.

Information and communication activities, meanwhile, recorded average earnings of €4,540.

Those differences illustrate how unevenly economic success can be distributed across the workforce, particularly as Cyprus attracts more highly paid international businesses.

Housing adds another complication.

According to the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC), residential property prices increased by 8.5 per cent year on year in the second quarter of 2026, with apartment prices rising by 8.9 per cent.

Foreign demand, domestic demand and construction costs all contributed to the increase. For property owners and investors, rising prices can be welcome. For younger workers trying to buy their first home, the picture is less encouraging.

And anyone familiar with Limassol’s property market will recognise the difficulty of reconciling an expanding international business community with the housing needs of people earning ordinary Cypriot salaries.

The comparison with Ireland should not be pushed too far.

The two countries differ considerably in economic structure, population and the scale of their multinational operations. Cyprus does not have anything approaching Ireland’s concentration of corporation tax receipts, nor does it experience the same degree of distortion in its national accounts.

There are also important differences in housing supply, public finances and the pressures facing their respective economies.

But the emphasising question is remarkably similar. What is economic success worth if the benefits do not reach enough of the people living in the country?

Ireland has created an international business economy that many governments would envy. Its achievements in attracting investment, developing skilled employment and generating tax revenue are substantial.

Its struggle has been turning that success into infrastructure, affordable housing and public services capable of keeping pace with economic growth.

Cyprus has an opportunity to learn from both sides of that experience.

A healthy government surplus is valuable. So is foreign investment. But the real measure of economic progress also lies in whether people can afford homes, find well-paid employment, access reliable services and see improvements in their standard of living.

The more difficult question for policymakers is not simply how much money the economy generates, but how effectively that money is used and how widely its benefits are shared.

Ireland has demonstrated how extraordinarily rich a small European country can become. It has also shown that having billions in the bank does not necessarily mean everybody is getting richer. For Cyprus, that may be the most valuable lesson of all.