Written answers

Tuesday, 24 January 2017

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Ministerial Meetings

Photo of Darragh O'BrienDarragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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328. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the meetings he has had with the Export Trade Council since 23 June 2016 and to date in 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2552/17]

Photo of Charles FlanaganCharles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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Since its establishment, the Export Trade Council has generally met twice annually. However, I increased the volume of meetings in the lead up to the UK referendum and since 23 June, I have chaired meetings of the Export Trade Council (ETC) on 20 July 2016 and on 18 October 2016. I will be convening the first meeting of 2017 on 7 February. The Export Trade Council was established in 2011 in order to strengthen cooperation and coordination across all Government Departments and State Agencies involved in the promotion of trade, tourism and inward investment. It brings together senior Ministers with an economic focus, the heads of State Agencies, and members drawn from the private sector, including IBEC, the Irish Exporters Association, and a number of business people with expertise in specific sectors. As such it constitutes a unique and invaluable forum for thorough and wide reaching discussions on the opportunities and challenges facing companies exporting from Ireland. These exchanges are all the more vital in light of current challenges and complexities in the global trading environment and developments in our relationship with key trading partners, notably the UK in the context of Brexit.

Indeed, the meeting on 20 July last year was convened in the wake of the British referendum decision to leave the European Union. We had a very productive and substantive discussion which helped identify challenges and opportunities in shaping a whole-of-government response. The meeting also reaffirmed market diversification and intensification as a key priority and mitigating strategy, helping to strengthen the resilience of our economy.

In keeping with this important goal the ETC meeting on 18 October had a particular focus on the Asia Pacific region and the opportunities for expanding and deepening market penetration in this crucial region for Irish exporters. Ireland’s Ambassadors in Beijing and Tokyo attended the meeting to convey the unique insights of their respective Local Market Teams on this key topic. The discussions took place in the context of the development of cross-sectoral whole of Government Strategies for the Asia-Pacific and Americas region, as set out in the Programme for Partnership Government, and the development of a new over-arching Trade, Tourism and Investment Strategy.

The development of the new Trade, Tourism and Investment Strategy, Trading Better, is well under way. It is being led jointly by my Department and the Department for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. As part of this process, a stakeholder consultation has just been completed and its results are being assessed and inputted into the strategy.

The upcoming meeting of the ETC on 7 February will be an opportunity to update on this ongoing work and to review developments of importance in the international trading environment, including Brexit and trade related goals of the incoming U.S. administration.

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