Ivor Callely (Fianna Fail)

I also have a similar experience to Senator Donohoe in working for a multinational company. When I started, it did not have a production plant in Ireland. Arising from a visit to the parent company in France in the early 1980s and because of what I was able to get my hands on because of my attachment to the political system, I encouraged the company to establish a production facility in Ireland. It did so because of the reasons alluded to by the Minister of State and Senator Donohoe, such as the sound education system and the beginnings of social partnership and infrastructural progress. The French pharmaceutical company's operation has developed from strength to strength. All Members acknowledge the pharmaceutical sector plays a large role in the economy.

All Members accept our competitiveness is an important issue. No matter where one goes in the world, people will acknowledge Ireland's economic success. However, when we touch on the issue of competitiveness when speaking to people about our success, they might mention other things about the cost of a product. If we have made Trojan efforts on health and safety and in relation to labour legislation, the minimum wage and all the other things that come with that, how can we compete with a country that does not have the standards we want to ensure are in place?

Talking to people who have gone abroad, for example, they will say that the price of a meal in Ireland is disgraceful. Recently, when abroad, I got a good steak and chips for €7. It would be difficult to find the same price in Ireland. It comes back to service, the expectations and demands of the public and the standards we have in place. While acknowledging the points on competitiveness raised by Senator Donohoe, it is important, however, to put it into perspective considering the level we have reached.

I am confident in the role played by IDA Ireland in promoting Ireland as an attractive location for inward investment. Never in the history of this great country have things been going better. From east to west, from north to south, there is activity and progress. There is scarcely any region that has not experienced some new project or has not a new development underway. Every day we hear of success stories, some new achievement and this is not confined, I am delighted to say, to the Irish economy. If we were discussing this issue, say, 30 or 40 years ago, there might have been great joy over one small project in one corner of this great nation. Given the facts and figures relayed to us by the Minister of State, not alone can we be proud of our achievements on the island of Ireland, we can also take pride in the Irish entrepreneurs who have gone abroad and become so successful in other markets.

We have entrepreneurs on the global stage playing a pivotal role in the global economy. We all know many of the big players and perhaps it is best I do not name them. We recognise that they play an enormous role in the differing economies of the world, from the UK to the US and from Germany to many of the Asian countries.

Not alone have we big players in the world economy, but our Irish products are on sale all over the world. I have referred to the position 30 and 40 years ago. At that time we were not at the races, or even standing still, so we have come a long way.

Although the foundations for this success, as the Minister of State has indicated, were put in place 15 years ago and more, the real period of growth has come about within the last decade. In the past ten years we have found a new confidence and developed a new belief in our capacity to succeed, whether at home or abroad. Ireland Inc. is rocking and rolling and the economy is sound for investment. Hopefully foreign direct investment will continue to locate here.

The economy has expanded at a rate never achieved before. We are showing record amounts of productivity and produce. Building and construction has enjoyed record levels of development. Our transport network has made enormous strides towards achieving appropriate connectivity, while motorway, rail and other forms of transport and infrastructure in general has come a very long way in line with all the other developments. Ireland has undergone an enormous transformation.

Arising from this, and given the global situation, Ireland is now competing for FDI in a very competitive and demanding marketplace. I acknowledge that FDI has, and hopefully will continue, to play a fundamental and critical role in the development of the economy. I also acknowledge the importance of small and medium enterprises, SMEs. Small businesses have a great deal to offer. They are very durable and adaptable, usually flexible and responsive to changing economic circumstances. Many small businesses grow into great success stories. While discussing the importance of FDI it is right, therefore, to acknowledge the significance of SMEs and the major contribution they make to the economy and to regional employment. There are great opportunities for further tapping the potential of SMEs. I congratulate all of those involved in their success and their representative body, the Small Firms Association, which has done enormous work over recent years.

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Ahern, for his statement and for providing the Irish economic statistics in the new global marketplace. As he said, Ireland continues to box above its weight and is in No. 2 position in the EU 15 for FDI investment. That is not a bad position to be in. The real question is whether we can hold that position and perhaps even top the league table.

Ireland is poised, hard at work and with high expectations of an even stronger economic future. There is confidence and aspiration that the economy will continue to compete successfully in the global economy. Such confidence and aspiration breeds debate and economic analysis, as policy makers and legislators seek to progress. While we do this, as policy makers and legislators, the fact that our communities and regions seek delivery of growth locally and a better quality of life should not be lost sight of.

In his statement on 2 October, Dr. Alan Gillespie, chairman of Ulster Bank, rightly pointed to the changing circumstances on the island of Ireland, the concern with economic life and the wellbeing of our respective communities. He stated these demand a common resolve and a concerted action for an island solution. He pointed out that the North has international goodwill, peace, democracy, devolved government and a flotilla of Stormont ministers serious about making a difference. He stated:

I believe that to market Northern Ireland effectively we should align the inward investment marketing activities of Invest NI (INI) with the Republic of Ireland's IDA. We should promote an all-island economy through a single, joined-up effective agency with the IDA and INI no longer competitors, but merged and fully collaborative.

The IDA is best in class; INI still has some catching up to do. Surely sensible people in Belfast and Dublin could work out a mutually beneficial operating protocol to bring real benefit to the whole island?

I wholeheartedly concur with this. Perhaps the Minister of State might ask his Department, which I am sure has studied this statement, to give me some type of position paper as regards the collaborative approach it has with the INI and its strategy on how progress may best be achieved.