Subjects · Leaving Certificate
Leaving Cert Economics
What has come up on the Economics papers (2021–2025), topic by topic, with step-by-step practice at Higher Level and Ordinary Level.
Three quick ones from the Economics topics that come up most.
- Boom
- Recession
- Recovery
- Taxation
- Savings
- Exports
- Private cost plus external cost
- External cost only
- Private cost minus external cost
Show the answers
(a) Recession
(b) Exports
(c) Private cost plus external cost
Higher Level
400 flash cards and 240 step-by-step drill questions at Higher Level.
What comes up
How many of the last 5 Economics Higher Level papers asked each topic.
| Topic | Asked | Last seen | How often |
|---|---|---|---|
| Government intervention in markets banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Market failure & externalities banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Taxation banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Demand, supply & equilibrium banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Circular flow & multiplier banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Elasticity of demand banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Inflation & the CPI banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Monopoly & price discrimination banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| The labour market banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Business cycles & economic aims banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Cost-benefit analysis banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Budget, fiscal policy & debt most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Labour force & unemployment most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Competitiveness & exchange rates most years | 4 of 5 | 2024 |
More topics: Costs, revenue & profit, Globalisation, MNCs & FDI, National income measures, The EU & global institutions, Competition policy & HHI, Consumer behaviour & utility, Growth, development & aid, Inequality & poverty, Monetary policy & the ECB, Scarcity & opportunity cost, Sustainable development, Trade & comparative advantage, Balance of payments, Banking & the Central Bank, Factors of production, The hidden economy, Oligopoly, Economic thinking & data, Economies & diseconomies of scale, Monopolistic competition, Perfect competition.
Try three
Government intervention in markets, 3 marks
A €2 per-unit subsidy is paid to producers and the market price falls from €10 to €9. How much of the subsidy do consumers gain?
- €2 per unit, all of it
- Nothing, as producers keep it all
- €1 per unit, half the subsidy
Show the answer
€1 per unit, half the subsidy
Consumers gain the fall in price: €10 − €9 = €1. Producers now receive €9 + €2 = €11, so they keep the other €1. The split depends on the elasticities.
Demand, supply & equilibrium, 3 marks
A 50,000-seat stadium sells tickets for one match. How is the supply curve drawn?
- Upward-sloping from the origin
- Vertical at 50,000 (perfectly inelastic)
- Horizontal at the ticket price (perfectly elastic)
Show the answer
Vertical at 50,000 (perfectly inelastic)
Capacity is fixed, so quantity cannot respond to price. A rise in demand only raises the price; a ticket price set below equilibrium leaves a shortage and feeds touting.
Market failure & externalities, 3 marks
A ban on smoking in workplaces corrects market failure mainly by…
- Protecting third parties from second-hand smoke
- Raising tax revenue from the sale of tobacco
- Increasing smokers' private benefit from smoking
Show the answer
Protecting third parties from second-hand smoke
Second-hand smoke is a negative externality on staff and customers. Regulation removes the external cost directly rather than putting a price on it.
Ordinary Level
300 flash cards and 150 step-by-step drill questions at Ordinary Level.
What comes up
How many of the last 5 Economics Ordinary Level papers asked each topic.
| Topic | Asked | Last seen | How often |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demand, supply & equilibrium banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Budget, fiscal policy & debt banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Taxation banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Government intervention in markets banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Sustainable development banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Trade & comparative advantage banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Factors of production banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| The labour market banker | 5 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Scarcity & opportunity cost most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Market failure & externalities most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Growth, development & aid most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Inflation & the CPI most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Labour force & unemployment most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 | |
| Circular flow & multiplier most years | 4 of 5 | 2025 |
More topics: Costs, revenue & profit, Monetary policy & the ECB, Balance of payments, Banking & the Central Bank, Consumer behaviour & utility, Economic thinking & data, Elasticity of demand, Globalisation, MNCs & FDI, Monopoly & price discrimination, National income measures, Monopolistic competition, Perfect competition, The EU & global institutions, The hidden economy, Oligopoly, Business cycles & economic aims, Competition policy & HHI, Cost-benefit analysis, Economies & diseconomies of scale, Inequality & poverty.
Try three
Taxation, 3 marks
A 10% tax on a €600 income and a 10% tax on a €60,000 income is?
- A progressive tax
- A regressive tax
- A proportional tax
Show the answer
A proportional tax
A proportional tax takes the same percentage from everyone, whatever their income. Both pay 10%, even though the amounts (€60 and €6,000) are different.
Sustainable development, 3 marks
A carbon tax aims to?
- Lower the price of petrol and diesel for drivers
- Make polluting fuels dearer so people use less
- Raise the price of renewable energy such as wind
Show the answer
Make polluting fuels dearer so people use less
A carbon tax puts a price on emissions. Fossil fuels become dearer, so households and firms have an incentive to switch to cleaner options. The money raised can fund green measures.
Demand, supply & equilibrium, 3 marks
A change in the good's own price causes?
- A movement along the demand curve
- A shift of the demand curve to the right
- A shift of the demand curve to the left
Show the answer
A movement along the demand curve
A change in the good's own price moves you along the curve. Other factors, like income, tastes or the price of related goods, shift the whole curve.