A Vital Conference

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Editorial / Periscope - Niall O'Dowd

A Vital Conference

October 22, 2007

THE news that the U.S. government will co-host an economic conference in Belfast on May 8, 2008, the anniversary of the agreement between the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Fein to share power, is an excellent development. The American involvement in the Irish peace process has been an extraordinary success story and a clear example of how long term dedicated involvement in an issue can pay off in spades.

There is no more important task in Northern Ireland right now than backing up the joint government and ensuring that jobs and investment follows from the political settlement.

The government is still enjoying a honeymoon period, but the questions will soon be asked if the new coalition is able to deliver on economic well-being.

The main engine of that will be American investment, and the economic conference allows for that focus which will be very welcome in the North.

Deputy First Minster Martin McGuinness was in the U.S. last week heralding the fact that Northern Ireland was now open for business in a way it could never have been during the Troubles. The economic conference will be an important staging post in achieving that.

The reality is that the 30 years of the Troubles left the Northern economy in poor shape. There is massive over-reliance on government jobs and their downstream spin-offs.

The fact that the British exchequer underwrites Northern Ireland to the tune of $10 billion a year and that 63% of jobs in Northern Ireland are in the government sector is clear cause for concern.

It is not all gloomy news for the North’s economy, however. Unemployment is down to under 5% from 17.2% in 1986. There are several huge development projects that will transform the face of Belfast in the coming years.

Chief among them is the Titanic Quarter project costing over $2 billion that will see the largest waterfront development in Europe.

Equally the Laganside project and the Cathedral Quarter project are huge developments that will greatly increase Belfast’s attractiveness as an investment location.

Already there has been a major property boom, fueled in part by investors from the Irish Republic who find Northern Ireland prices far lower for similar properties than in the south.

But the major partner missing is international investment. The decades of the Troubles meant that little foreign investment made its way to the North and the state is starting from very far behind.

The economic conference will be the first major showpiece that the state has enjoyed since the new dispensation. The involvement of the U.S. government at the highest level is an interesting and encouraging sign that the U.S. is fully signed on.

Northern Ireland has many advantages, including a skilled English speaking workforce and a prime location between the U.S. and mainland Europe in order to take advantage of the single European market.

What it does not have is a low corporation tax rate which has played such a key role in securing investment in the Irish Republic. Doubtless that will be one the issues fully thrashed out at the conference.

Once again the focus will be on American investment and the role of the Bush administration in helping Northern Ireland succeed. Current US Envoy Paula Dobriansky has been very impressive in that role so far. This conference will be a giant step in the right direction.

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