The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland must work together to bring in foreign direct investment (FDI), Micheál Martin has said, following the publication of a key economic report.
Border counties could become home to “very significant” foreign investment benefiting from low taxes in the Republic, but, crucially, with ready access to Northern Ireland’s labour pool, even though there are tax issues to navigate.
“The real challenge I’ve always found, which hasn’t really been grasped, is whether we could have a joint FDI offering,” the Taoiseach told an Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) conference, though he questioned the interest displayed by state agencies in the past.
“I think there has been a real lack in trying to pull that together. It’s not easy and there are challenges, but I am not sure that the will has been there among the agencies. Understandably, they have their remits,” he said.
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Enterprise Ireland and Invest NI have made “significant gains” to boost the numbers of small and medium-sized companies from both sides of the Border travelling abroad together in search of business, though “not as consistently as we might like”.
Illustrating the understanding enjoyed among unionist politicians of the successes of the Industrial Development Authority (IDA), Mr Martin quoted former Democratic Unionist Party leader Peter Robinson’s declaration: “Give me the IDA any day!”
Highlighting issues on which he wanted to see progress with Stormont, Mr Martin said there were substantial advantages to co-operation on education and skills training, health and environmental policy, along with direct investment and energy security.
“I want to see progress in each of these areas, and more in the times ahead,” he said as he launched the ESRI’s report, Sharing the Island: Economic and Social Challenges and Opportunities.
Huge strides have been made since the Belfast Agreement nearly three decades ago, but cross-Border co-operation has “so far failed to meet its full potential” since.
“The sustained peace that we enjoy must also mean increasing prosperity, opportunity and wellbeing for all. This is pivotal in achieving a more reconciled future for all communities on this island,” Mr Martin said.
Pointing to the ground made since he established the Shared Island initiative in 2020, Mr Martin said “a step change” had taken place in the deepening of all-island co-operation and connections.
Half of the €1 billion fund allocated by the Government has already been marked for spending, and a further €1 billion was going to be spent over the next decade on cross-Border co-operation, he said.
The Government, in conjunction with Stormont and London, would pursue “the exciting, essential opportunity” that now existed to pursue “a prosperity agenda for the whole island and achieve a deeper reconciliation”.
Research carried out by the ESRI has highlighted the ”huge untapped potential” that existed for all-island co-operation, along with the “significant commonalities and differences”.
He noted the findings surrounding lower educational levels, productivity and life expectancy trends in Northern Ireland, which were “a cause of concern” and a reminder of the need for more rapid change.
Prompted, perhaps, by events in the United States, the Taoiseach went out of his way to praise the role of the independent, but state-funded ESRI in Irish public policymaking.
“Institutions do matter in democracies, and the independence of institutions do matter in democracies, and access to independent research is critical in terms of keeping society and a democracy fit, and on its toes,” he said.
The ESRI has consistently made landmark contributions to the development of public policy in Ireland.
In a time of increased discord and reduced attention spans in public debate, the institute was a respected, rigorous voice that informed discussion, the Taoiseach told the gathering hosted by the ESRI, which this year celebrates its 65th anniversary.
