Conor Murphy (Sinn Fein)

I thank the witnesses for the presentations. They have covered a lot about energy infrastructure, so I will not go back into that. I agree with Deputy Gogarty about the potential for renewables across the island and where that could bring us.

The Government acknowledged a number of times yesterday in the budget speeches the macroeconomic vulnerability regarding corporation tax, the tax take, the concerns about the United States and where that is going. Clearly, what is required is a shift not to close that down but to encourage more diversity within the economy. From the perspective of the witnesses, what are the steps that need to be taken? I presume they largely represent small and medium enterprises across the country, and specifically in Dublin for the Dublin Chamber of Commerce. What steps are needed to rebalance the economy to try to offset some of the vulnerability, which I believe will increase over the coming years? We have come through the pandemic and now have the tariff issues, and that has followed on from Brexit. All of these things increase the vulnerability of the macroeconomic model.

With regard to skills, the witnesses were clear that, especially with regard to technology, skills are moving so fast that it is difficult to keep up with what is required. What vehicle do the chambers have in terms of representing those issues directly through the Department? For example, is there is a skills council on which businesses are represented to give them an opportunity to engage with skills providers? How does that fit into Government policy and the approach to skills? Is there a direct conduit for that or is it just Chambers Ireland putting forward position papers and hoping that is reflected? There are some very well-resourced IT colleges and skills providers around the country. However, the ability for them to keep abreast of the developments that are required in technology is dependent on Government support. It is a necessary part of productivity and growing the economy. What is the vehicle for the chambers to try to ensure that the skills provision matches what is necessary for business expansion and growth?