Conor Murphy (Sinn Fein)

I welcome the Minister and apologise for not being here for his opening statement. Like many other Members here, I am juggling committee responsibilities with speaking in the House. In that regard, I know we will have an opportunity to speak to him at the committee later on today. I have had an opportunity to read his remarks and I just wanted to make a few remarks in response to them.

Clearly, there is a growing recognition of the vulnerability of the Irish economic model and the prospects there are for fiscal returns in relation to that. That has long been recognised. We are not just hitting economic shocks now - I am not suggesting the Minister is saying that - but really we have been experiencing them since Covid. The economic shocks brought by that were followed by the war in Ukraine, the onslaught in the Middle East and now the advent of a new administration in America with very destructive trading policies. There has been one economic shock after another. Increasingly, this economic model which the Minister draws attention to - I know other documents have drawn attention to it - shows our reliance on a lot of eggs being in the one basket in terms of foreign direct investment. Evermore, that vulnerability is being highlighted. While that has been highlighted for some time, the requirement for committed action to look at the economic model itself and that vulnerability around it is growing and the need to take steps to try to address that becomes evermore imperative in the immediate future.

The uncertainty will not go away, regardless of where we are with tariffs. They have been up and they have been down. Different propositions have been withdrawn and others have then been floated with even more irrational outcomes. I agree with the Minister's assessment that this idea of tariffs and that type of war with tariffs is disruptive for everyone. The EU and Ireland have been taking the correct approach of preparing for the worst while trying to negotiate a more sensible approach to all of this. Nonetheless, that volatility will continue; not just with the American Administration but also with other geopolitical events and developments.

It is one thing to look at the narrow tax base but there have also been concerns raised about the narrowness of the enterprise mix in Ireland. A lot of focus is either on those large foreign direct investment companies or the companies that feed off them and provide services to them. The enterprise mix has been identified as being too narrow, in terms of sector but in terms of geography as well. There is much more that can be done in the time ahead to support our indigenous businesses, encourage them into exporting, encourage them to be more productive and more competitive - I know that has been a feature of the discussion so far - and to try to make sure that is replicated across the country.

On competitiveness, the Minister highlighted the Future Ireland Fund and the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund in his remarks. Of course, it is necessary for our own competitiveness. It is not a problem unique to Ireland. It has been seen across Europe. In comparison to other competing countries, there has been a considerable lack of investment in infrastructure and a subsequent and consequent reduction in competitiveness. Clearly, that is something that needs to be critically addressed, not just here but across Europe. It is not simply a matter of adding more funds to that - obviously, funds are very welcome - but of analysing what has caused infrastructure delay, restriction, overspend and all of the associated problems we are all very familiar with in relation to significant infrastructure problems here. As well as money being applied, there will have to be a look at the system and how we deliver infrastructure as well.

One other point that is worth making but is not mentioned in the Minister's remarks - I know from my own engagement in a previous role that he is very enthusiastic in engaging in North-South work - is the trade between North and South and South and North, which has gone up sevenfold since the Good Friday Agreement was signed. It offers a way to create more diversity in how the economic model works, to create more opportunities and more prosperity across the island, and to see what areas are ripe for growth. The further north and the further west you go, you see that there is growth potential there. It also offers a way to encourage that support which is not just in terms of allowing and encouraging more trade. The Minister will know we invested more in InterTradeIreland, and that was supported by the Government here as well, to try to give them more resources to do the work they need to do.

Through things like the Shared Island Fund, there is also an opportunity to invest more in skills and in people. Investment in infrastructure is one way to improve competitiveness but we have to invest in people. It is important at the high level that we have PhDs, and research and development and innovation needs support, but those who are economically less active need support to get the requisite skills to make a contribution to the economy as well. It is a balance between ensuring that investment. There are opportunities right across the island. There is a lot of collaboration between the academic institutions and colleges, and there are training opportunities there as well. In terms of investing in competitiveness and getting a more reasonable balance and more of an economic mix in terms of the enterprise right across the island, all of those factors are very necessary.

I look forward to continuing the discussion at committee level, both today and into the future, about that. The warning signals that have been there for some time are now entering red alert territory. The time for action has long passed. There are some ideas in this for doing that but we need to move with haste and consider the all-Ireland potential, not just for the sake of doing that but also given that the all-Ireland economy is already developing. It is something that with more encouragement and support can become a very significant factor and assist what needs to be done with the economic model on this part of the island but across the island more generally.