Debate contribution: North-South Ministerial Council: Trade and Business Development

Debate contribution by Dr Caoimhe Archibald on 6 May 2025.

MLA

Dr Caoimhe Archibald

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

6 May 2025

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Ministerial Statements

Heading

North-South Ministerial Council: Trade and Business Development

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4929363

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I wish to make a statement in compliance with section 52 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 on the North/South Ministerial Council (NSMC) in trade and business development sectoral format, which was held in Armagh on 16 April 2025. Minister Gordon Lyons MLA and I represented the Executive, and I chaired the meeting. The Irish Government were represented by Peter Burke TD, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment. The statement has been agreed with Minister Lyons, and I am making it on behalf of us both. The NSMC welcomed the overall achievements of InterTradeIreland since the previous sectoral meeting in October 2024, including achieving a business development value of £115 million in 2024, which is well in excess of its target. Ministers acknowledged the valuable support that InterTradeIreland has provided for small and medium-sized companies through its trade and development programmes, such as the Acumen programme, Go-2-Tender programme and the advice and support provided through its Trade Hub. The Council recognised the positive impact of the innovation and technology programmes administered by InterTradeIreland, such as the collaborative innovation pathway, which has provided support to over 900 SMEs. Ministers noted InterTradeIreland’s ongoing research work, which includes the recently launched report, 'The changing nature of trade on the island of Ireland', and the completed research into the business development ecosystem.

The NSMC noted that InterTradeIreland is leading on the delivery of the women’s entrepreneurship and clustering strands of the Shared Island enterprise scheme with the launch of eight pilot programmes for women entrepreneurs in 2024. Planning is also under way for TCI Global — The Competitiveness Institute — cluster conference in Dublin in October 2025. The Council noted that InterTradeIreland hosted a successful venture capital conference in Dublin in March 2025 for almost 900 attendees, which highlighted current sources of equity funding and provided a collaborative environment for innovation.

The Council approved the InterTradeIreland 2025 business plan and recommended the budget/grant provision. The NSMC noted InterTradeIreland’s annual report and accounts for 2022, which have been certified by the Comptrollers and Auditors General (C&AG) and laid before the Assembly and the Houses of the Oireachtas. The annual report and accounts for 2023 will be laid shortly. Ministers noted the work taken forward by InterTradeIreland as it leads on the women’s entrepreneurship element of the Shared Island enterprise scheme. The Council welcomed the presentations from entrepreneurs who have benefited from the supports provided by the women’s entrepreneurship pilot programmes. The NSMC appointed a board member to the board of the trade and business development body, InterTradeIreland. Ministers welcomed the presentation by Everoze on offshore wind and hydrogen opportunities on the island of Ireland and noted the opportunities available through joint working to deliver mutual benefits in line with the economic and decarbonisation strategies of both jurisdictions. The Council agreed to hold its next NSMC trade and business development meeting in November 2025. I commend the statement to the Assembly and welcome questions.

I thank the Member for his question. Yes, both issues were discussed. The agenda had been agreed in advance of the tariffs issue, and the issue was strongly reflected in my comments, with our concerns about the potential impact of tariffs on the island as a whole and the North specifically. I have established a tariff working group, of which the Member will be aware and on which InterTradeIreland is represented, and will be engaging with InterTradeIreland and Ministers in the South, as I am with British Ministers on tariffs and on understanding what the potential impacts and implications are as the situation continues to develop over the next number of weeks. Dual market access is a significant driver for our local economy, and InterTradeIreland and Invest NI obviously have a role to play in helping to support businesses to maximise the potential opportunities. That was discussed and raised.

It is undeniable that we have an all-island economy. We have highly integrated supply chains across the island, which was significantly recognised in the negotiations that led to the protocol and, then, the Windsor framework. There is a huge potential benefit for us through the ability to localise our supply chains. Particularly at a time of global uncertainty, we should look to understand where our supply chains are and how we can support businesses to develop them. I have no regrets about championing the North's economy, the all-island economy and the need to recognise that we have highly integrated supply chains across this island and North/South trade that must be protected. I equally recognise that our trade with Britain is really important, which is why we need to minimise frictions North/South and east-west. As Minister, I will continue to work on that.

I thank the Member for her question. InterTradeIreland's confirmed programmes and key activities in the 2023-25 corporate plan are not only relevant but key to the assistance that cross-border SMEs need to grow. InterTradeIreland continues to make a valuable contribution through its trade and development programmes for small and medium-sized companies that are trading across the border and in both jurisdictions, as I have reflected in comments to other Members. InterTradeIreland plays a role in helping businesses from here take the first step in exporting and in developing their supply chains across the island to maximise the benefits of dual market access and is particularly well placed to do that. It also has a key role in supporting our understanding of the impact of tariffs and our response to that.

I thank the Member for his question. At the NSMC, research that had been undertaken by Everoze on the potential for offshore wind was presented to us. InterTradeIreland will put an increasing focus on that over the current year. It will look at further research programmes in renewables, including offshore wind and hydrogen. There is potential across the island. As the Member will know, InterTradeIreland is also responsible for the delivery of cluster funding that is coming via the Shared Island enterprise scheme. There are opportunities in that work to look at how we, as an island, can maximise the potential in the renewable sector.

I thank the Member for his question. The concept of clustering is based on the idea that companies benefit from mutual support, knowledge exchange and innovation, which, ultimately, enhances the competitiveness of the members of the cluster. InterTradeIreland has an important role in exploring future cross-border opportunities, as I just mentioned to Mr Honeyford. A number of areas of the economy have the potential to be further developed on an all-island basis, and InterTradeIreland is well placed to support that work. Clustering can support businesses in becoming more innovative and more productive, which very much aligns with the principles of my economic vision.

I thank the Member for her question. I am not sure that I have in front of me the detail that she asks for, but I am happy to share that with her. As the Member will be aware, the Assembly was not sitting for a number of years and that held up the process in some of the laying of accounts. That is why we have a bit of a backlog there. That is being addressed, and we are moving through various accounts for different North/South bodies being laid as required.

I thank the Member for the question. That is an area of work that I am particularly excited about. We have a lot of work to do in encouraging female entrepreneurship and closing the gap in their ability to access support and, importantly, finance. InterTradeIreland undertook pilot programmes in 2024, and €8 million in the Shared Island enterprise scheme is targeted at female entrepreneurship. We heard from two female entrepreneurs — academics, actually — who benefited as participants of some of the pilot programmes, and their testimony to the effectiveness of those programmes was quite something. InterTradeIreland is evaluating the pilot programmes with a view to rolling out further programmes in the coming year. There will be more announcements and more to talk about in relation to that in the near future.

I thank the Member for her question. As well as some of the work that I have already referred to, InterTradeIreland will seek to take forward its ambitious plans, such as an economic policy forum, and to continue to build on the success of the trade hub. It will also look to develop and undertake further research programmes, some of which I mentioned to Mr Honeyford, including on offshore wind and hydrogen, artificial intelligence and digital transformation, services, trade and sectoral ecosystem research. InterTradeIreland is coming to the end of its current business plan and will be developing its corporate plans for 2026-28, so that work will be going on over the course of this year as well.

I thank the Member for his question, and I agree with the sentiment behind it. When you look at the huge increases that there have been in cross-border trade over the 25 years since its inception, you see that InterTradeIreland has been successful. It is well placed to support businesses and the development of the all-island economy, and that is something that I am certainly happy to work with it on.

I thank the Member for his question. As I said to Mr McNulty, over the past 25 years, we have seen enhanced trade across the island, and that has developed further since the introduction of the protocol.

Brexit created barriers for businesses here and in Britain. They face significant challenges in their trade that are reflected in the export statistics, where we well outperform Britain. We have seen enhanced trade across the island, both North to South and South to North, over the past number of years following the introduction of the protocol. That is just a matter of fact.

1,630 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:25 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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