Ireland's Budget at a Crossroads
Grammar: Language of hedging and speculation (modals: will, would, may, likely)
A Business English English lesson exploring money.
What's in this lesson
A Business English ESL lesson on money, practising language of hedging and speculation (modals: will, would, may, likely). The worksheet has a reading, target vocabulary and discussion questions.
From the reading: Ireland's Budget at a Crossroads
Ireland's Minister for Finance, Simon Harris, used a speech at the Economic and Social Research Institute to deliver a stark message: the decisions made in Budget 2027 will define the country's economic future for decades. The budget itself, due on 6 October, will include €1.5 billion in new taxation measures and €7 billion in new public spending — one of the largest packages in the state's recent history. Harris framed the moment not as a routine annual exercise but as a genuine fork in the road.
Vocabulary
- fork in the road
- move the needle
- stopped short of
- throw money at
- concentrated
- genuine
- run
- sovereign
- structural
Discussion questions
- How much should a government save versus spend when the economy is growing?
- What happens to a country's economy when its population gets significantly older?
- Should a country depend heavily on one industry if that industry is very profitable?
Ireland's Budget at a Crossroads
Grammar: Language of hedging and speculation (modals: will, would, may, likely)
What's in this lesson:
Full lesson plan with reading, grammar, vocabulary, and discussion.
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