Niall Blaney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. Kelly, Mr. Neill and Mr. Roberts and thank them from their presentations. Mr. Kelly gave a very positive outlook in relation to manufacturing in Northern Ireland. There is an enormous number of businesses. The figure is shocking. One would never think that Mr. Kelly would represent 4,500 in Manufacturing Northern Ireland. That says so much about the sector. Moreover, there is much that we in the South can learn from that. We have shifted from manufacturing towards tech and pharma and have forgotten what we used to do, to the extent that we depend too much on certain sectors. There are lessons we could learn from Northern Ireland because we could have much more manufacturing than we do. I say that in passing. It is not an issue I intend developing with Mr. Kelly today.

I am interested in the mid-Ulster issue. I have stated at different times that 40% of exports come from manufacturing in mid-Ulster. It is funny that there has been a shift from Belfast to mid-Ulster. What are the reasons for that? I wonder if the motorway network and the development of the A4 has something to do with that. East Tyrone has developed well whereas west Tyrone has not, and the A5 is still an outlier. The whole west of Northern Ireland has not really developed and the infrastructure has not developed either. Has that been a major contributing factor in Mr. Kelly's view? West of the Bann, at the northern end, it is good to see the 20-odd miles of motorway from Derry to Dungiven completed. It would be nice to see the last section done. Will that be a major contributor to possible future development in manufacturing, and jobs generally, in the north west of Northern Ireland, particularly around Derry?

Mr. Kelly predicts that manufacturing will grow faster in Northern Ireland than in any other region. I would like to know more about that and Mr. Kelly's reasons for making that statement. Mr. Kelly has nearly given the questions. I would like to hear him answer them.

There has been a lot of talk in recent months about the Windsor Framework not working. Given that manufacturing is doing so well, what is Mr. Kelly's opinion in relation to the framework? Are there still barriers that need to be addressed or are things working fairly well? Does Mr. Kelly want to see anything changed?

Manufacturing Northern Ireland members export many of their goods to the EU. Since Brexit, it no longer has representation in the EU. Is that a barrier for manufacturing businesses? What would Mr. Kelly like to see replace that or is there a battle among businesses in Northern Ireland to have some other mechanism of representation in Europe? What are Mr. Kelly's views on that?

Mr. Roberts represents 2,000 retailers. On the all-island rail review, he is dead right. It is important that we see this happen. As somebody from north Donegal, close to Derry, it is important from a Northern Ireland perspective that a spur is made from the Belfast to Derry route. It would really make Northern Ireland and every aspect of the northern part of the country. I and others have been battling hard to have this spur included at some stage. I do not care when but we need to start talking about it and lobbying for it. I would appreciate Mr. Roberts view on that.

I thank Mr. Neill for his presentation on hospitality. We have a squeeze here in the South with the different wars that are taking place. Refugees, including Ukrainians, are coming here which has put a bit of a squeeze on tourism. Is Hospitality Ulster finding the same with its hotels? What is Mr. Neill's view on joining up the Wild Atlantic Way with the causeway coast and the eastern coast, so that there would be an all-island approach to tourism? The Wild Atlantic Way in the western region has been one of the great examples of how tourism should be run in this country. Tourism numbers have taken off since that was developed. It would be a smart approach, and one Tourism Ireland should and could push more, to join up and take an all-island approach to tourism with an all-island route.