Dáil Éireann

DÁIL ÉIREANN AN COMHCHOISTE UM GHNÓTHAÍ EACHTRACHA AGUS TRÁDÁIL JOINT COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AffaIRS AND TRADE Dé Céadaoin, 20 Feabhra 2013 Wednesday, 20 February 2013 The Joint Committee met at 4 p.m. MEMBERS PRESENT: Deputy Eric Byrne, Senator Deirdre Clune, Deputy Seán Crowe, Senator Mark Daly, Deputy Bernard J. Durkan, Senator Lorraine Higgins, Deputy Olivia Mitchell, Senator David Norris. Deputy Dan Neville, Deputy Maureen O’Sullivan, Deputy Brendan Smith, In attendance: Senator Marie Maloney. DEPUTY PAT BREEN IN THE CHAIR. 1 TRADE PROMOTION: DISCUSSION (RESUMED) WITH BRITISH IRISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Trade Promotion: Discussion (Resumed) with British Irish Chamber of Commerce Chairman: I have received apologies from Senator Jim Walsh, who is unable to be with us. Draft minutes of the meeting of 13 February have been circulated to all members. Are the minutes of 13 February agreed? Agreed. Unless there are any matters arising from the minutes we will proceed with the main business of the meeting. The main reason we are here this afternoon is to consider the matter of trade promotion and the role the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in economic recovery. We will hear a presentation by the British Irish Chamber of Commerce. We are joined by two representatives of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Steve Aiken, chief executive, and Ms Emily Glen, research associate. You are both very welcome. Mr. Aiken and Ms Glen are here to offer the views of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce on trade promotion. This meeting is in the context of a series of meetings and other activities that the committee will be undertaking in respect of trade promotion and the role of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in economic recovery. The organisation represents the interests of a broad range of businesses on both sides of the Irish Sea focused on Ireland and Britain and the joint economic space within the islands. Its broadly-based membership allied with a comprehensive approach seeks to understand the influence of the wider environment in which its members operate. This puts the organisation in a good position to reflect on how official Ireland and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in particular can help to improve our trading relationship with one of our most important export markets. The British Irish Chamber of Commerce is a relatively new organisation. This is rather surprising; I had thought such a chamber of commerce would have been in existence for many years. It has the ambition of becoming the main focal point for British-Irish business and the associated economic community. The inaugural annual conference took place last month and was a successful step in the right direction. Since the British Irish Chamber of Commerce is a young organisation we hope it can bring some new perspectives on the matters the committee is examining. The aim of the committee’s examination is to prepare and publish a report on the strategy and response of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to the economic crisis, to the Department’s newly- recognised responsibilities in trade promotion and to the programme for Government in terms of trade promotion and economic recovery, and how well the Department is performing in these respects. Before I invite our witnesses to make their presentation I wish to advise them that they are protected by absolute privilege in respect of utterances at this committee. However, if you are directed by the committee to cease making remarks on a particular issue and you continue to so do, you are entitled thereafter only to a qualified privilege in respect of your remarks. You are directed that only comments and evidence in respect of the subject matter of this meeting is to be given and you are asked to respect the parliamentary practice to the effect that, where possible, you should not criticise or make charges against a Member of either Houses of the 2 JOINT COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE Oireachtas, a person outside the Houses or an official either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable. Without further ado I call on Steve Aiken to make a presentation on behalf of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce. You are very welcome. Mr. Steve Aiken: I thank the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade for inviting the British Irish Chamber of Commerce to address it. The economic relationship between our islands has never been stronger or more central. The British Irish Chamber of Commerce is a unique business grouping that represents its members’ interests on either side of the Irish Sea and the increasingly joint perspectives that span all these islands. In the two years since our formation we have grown from a small 22-member organisation to a broad-based chamber with approximately 200 members, representing companies from one or two-person high technol- ogy start-ups up to FTSE 100 quoted corporations. We continue to expand and we expect to double our membership by 2016. Our companies have a turnover of approximately €38 billion and employ approximately 54,000 people on either side of the Irish Sea in sectors as diverse as renewable energy, the arts, agribusiness, financial services, construction, transportation, manu- facturing and academia among others. Our chamber already has more than 70 of the top 100 companies among its members. This should be seen against a backdrop of a trading relationship between Ireland and the United Kingdom worth an estimated €54 billion. This economic output and activity makes Ireland the fifth largest market for UK goods and services, while the United Kingdom is Ireland’s third largest market. As a relatively youthful organisation, we have also had the opportunity to develop into non-traditional sectors such as renewable energy, interactive business support services and new media. We can look at the business space in new and innovative ways and have been able to capitalise on the growing interest of the two Governments in making the economic and com- mercial links which are central to the future relationship among these Islands. Furthermore, we see a great opportunity for further growth on either side of the Irish Sea as our companies and the State and semi-State bodies with which we co-operate continue to develop and expand in existing markets by using the joint space as a gateway to wider international opportunities. We see our combined joint business space as becoming more integrated, interconnected and interdependent to our mutual advantage. It is important to emphasise that we feel fortunate our respective Governments and State and semi-State agencies have already done so much to support business, especially in the light of the current economic crisis and the tight constraints on budgets. Furthermore, it is noteworthy, as highlighted by last year’s joint statement between the Taoiseach and the British Prime Minister, that the relationship between these Islands is no longer defined by our culture, history and geography but also by economic links that are important for all of us. With the majority of UK businesses and business organisations, we are strong advocates of the United Kingdom staying within the Single European Market. We believe our economies abhor uncertainty. Many of our companies are looking intently at making long-term invest- ments, but the uncertainty about UK membership of the European Union could have significant consequences for that process. We believe the Government and the Department of Foreign Af- fairs and Trade, in particular, will play a major role publicly and in the background to assuage doubts within Britain, reinforce the need for the United Kingdom to remain committed to the European Union and help to interpret the British perspective for our European compatriots. We consider that Britain remaining within the Single European Market is vital for Irish long-term interests, as well as those of the United Kingdom. 3 TRADE PROMOTION: DISCUSSION (RESUMED) WITH BRITISH IRISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE The chamber would like the opportunity to discuss three key points covering Ireland, the United Kingdom and the recent output from our conference entitled, Gathering for Action. On the success of Ireland plc, the chamber welcomes the commitment of the Government to trade and business. We note the importance attached to these issues by the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, particularly as set out in his Department’s statement of strategy for the period 2011 to 2014. Our experience with the Department in Dublin, the Irish Embassy in London, Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and Bord Bia has been very positive and their as- sistance to us has been first rate. In particular, we express our members’ appreciation of the efforts of the ambassador, Mr. Bobby McDonagh, and the counsellor, Mr. Eugene Forde, in the embassy in London to support the chamber and our members’ interests. They should be congratulated for their dedication and commitment to Ireland. The role of the Irish Embassy in London is pivotal to Irish companies in gaining access and support in one of the world’s tough- est global marketplaces. The embassy regularly hosts events on our behalf, acts as a conduit for Irish companies and provides a venue for events hosted by Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and Bord Bia. However, as a valuable and heavily utilised resource, it needs to be adequately funded and staffed. After the embassy in Washington, the Irish Embassy in London is our most important diplomatic outpost and should receive the most emphasis, especially in view of the forthcoming debate on the United Kingdom in the European Union. We are conscious that Ireland has taken the route of supporting trade, inward investment and economic promotion by utilising the very effective organisations of Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and Bord Bia.

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