According to Daniel Hamermesh, beauty pays - attractive people are more successful and there is a beauty premium. You can see his book on this subject here.
The Beautiful People dating website has recently revealed that Northern Irish men are ugliest in the world (click here for the story). Does the beauty premium apply to economies? If so, the Northern Irish economy is doomed! Can government intervention do something about this? Taxes on kebabs or subsidies for male hair products?