Emer Currie (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is nice to see Mr. Kelly, Mr. Roberts and Mr. Neill. I was introduced to them by my cousin, Mr. Darragh Cullen, who is MD of Edge Innovate. I loved the mentions of Dungannon, Coalisland and Edendork, and how well those areas are doing in manufacturing. I am proud of my cousin and the work that Edge Innovate is doing.

My first question relates to the North-South Ministerial Council and the consistent absence of a working council since 2017. Will our guests give me an indication of the kinds of things they think we are missing out on as a result of not having that level of co-operation?

What can the Irish Government do to support manufacturing and the work our guests are doing? They are saying they cannot rely on the Irish Government but at the same time, the figures they have presented today are really impressive. It would be good for us to hear more about what they are doing and we should also understand what we can do to support them.

I believe that a salary cap of £37,500 has been put on workers coming into Northern Ireland. Is that correct? What impact is it going to have?

My last question relates to services and the all-island economy. We hear a lot about how well goods and trade are doing but at the same time, our services are lagging behind. Is that something we can address?

Where I am coming from this morning is a desire to talk positively about the all-island economy. Our guests' areas are performing well. However, I would agree that tourism is not doing as well as it could be doing. I want to hear about the institutions and structures, and how they could be working better from a political point of view to support the businesses our guests represent.