Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/281379 
Year of Publication: 
2024
Series/Report no.: 
QBS Research Paper No. 2024/02
Publisher: 
Queen's University Belfast, Queen's Business School, Belfast
Abstract: 
This paper examines the economic impact of Ireland's partition, assessing market access losses using detailed geospatial data and multimodal transport network analysis. The study reveals that partition significantly reduced market access on both sides of the border, contributing to population decline. Districts closest to the border were the most affected, with estimated population figures being approximately 10 per cent lower than they would have been without the border. This negative impact has persisted, remaining evident despite the reduction of many physical border barriers. A counterfactual analysis suggests that absent the border, the current populations of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland would have been 3 per cent and 5 per cent higher, respectively. These findings illustrate the persistent role of political borders in shaping regional economic activity.
Subjects: 
Economic Geography
Irish Border
Market Access
Economic History of Ireland
JEL: 
R12
F15
R11
N94
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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