Debate contribution: Economic Trends on the Island of Ireland

Debate contribution by Mr Pádraig Delargy on 26 January 2026.

MLA

Mr Pádraig Delargy

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

26 January 2026

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Economic Trends on the Island of Ireland

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5341345

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

I thank all those who participated in the debate, which has been really interesting. I will go through some of the points in more detail, but, first, I want to look at the context for the debate. The ESRI report is a significant and timely piece of work, not least because it measures economic trends on an all-Ireland basis and reflects how our economy operates, but because it is grounded in robust data on productivity, labour markets, skills, infrastructure and regional performance. That is the evidence that should be central to how decisions are made going forward. The data shows that the all-Ireland economy is not only real but growing. InterTradeIreland figures demonstrate that cross-border trade has increased significantly in recent years, reaching record levels and supporting tens of thousands of jobs across this island. Of all the key words that have been used in today's debate, the most important one is "collaboration". It is about how we do things better when we work together. As Members across the Chamber have mentioned, good data leads to good decisions being made. It is about creating well-paid jobs and a sustainable economy that is based on the Minister's economic vision. The disparity in disposable income and life expectancy across Ireland is related to a number of factors, one of which, in particular, is partition. That is related to the fact that, in my constituency and in other border constituencies, there are fewer options for healthcare and employment. Those regions in particular have a lower life expectancy. We must, therefore, grasp any opportunity that we can to make more informed and better policy decisions and to work collaboratively across Ireland. The North West Cancer Centre is just one example of our doing that. Members across the Chamber worked to make that a reality, and it now delivers world-class, leading healthcare in the north-west — healthcare for people in Derry, Donegal, Tyrone and further afield. Everyone benefits from closer cooperation. Some of the reactions from the unionist Benches to the debate have been disappointing, and I disagree with them. They have tried to present this as a zero-sum game. That is not the case. It is not about talking down any trade or economic opportunity but talking up all-Ireland economic opportunities. That is what we can do when we work together: we can achieve far more. Let no one feel that it is about taking away from what we have; it is about adding to that, enhancing and augmenting what is there already. I will go through some of the figures to back that up. In 2001, all-Ireland trade was €3·1 billion in the South and £1·9 billion in the North. In 2015, those figures were fairly flat and static. The 2024 figures show a comparative figure of €10·6 billion in the South and £9 billion in the North. Those figures speak for themselves, and the only ideological arguments on that today have come from the unionist Benches, because the reality is that those Members are ignoring economic opportunity for people across Ireland — that goes for your constituents as much as it does mine. You are ignoring opportunities for businesses, you are ignoring opportunities for economic growth and you continue to do what you do regularly, which is to bury your head in the sand. When we look at the opportunity for all-Ireland trade, we also look at what has happened here in the North. Many of you have talked about the barriers that the Windsor framework apparently presents. However, the reality is that the majority of you voted for Brexit and championed Brexit. The Windsor framework is the opportunity that has resulted in economic benefit in the North. It has protected our businesses and constituents and has continued to show economic growth and upward economic trends. When representatives from Invest NI presented to the Committee, they told us, in no uncertain terms, that the reason that businesses are not talking up the Windsor framework opportunity is that they are afraid to, and that the reason that they are afraid is that the Windsor framework is continually politicised by unionism. That is not good enough. Everyone in the Chamber needs to work together and push in the same direction to properly support our businesses.

Yes.

The Member has continually made that argument, and he has heard continually from businesses that have presented to the Economy Committee, on which we both sit, that they do not want to raise the issue of the benefits of the Windsor framework, because it has been politicised by his party and others. The reality is that it is one of a myriad of issues and one of a plethora of opportunities to explain why businesses open here. There is not one singular reason why any business opens here; there is a combination of reasons, including the fact that we have a world-class education system, that we have opportunities for all-Ireland trade and that we support our businesses. I have heard from many businesses that have invested in Derry that they have access to Ministers continuously, that they feel supported by the economic vision and that they see the economic benefits of investing here. Not only do they invest here but they stay here and build. I think that the Member and other members of the Committee should champion that. I will move on to the points that were made by Alliance Members. David and Kate made some great points. Kate, you are a real champion of data, which has been at the core of all the arguments today. This is about informing better policy and better opportunities. To come back to the original point, David highlighted the fact that this is not zero-sum politics. It is a fact that east-west trade has also grown. We want trade to grow for every area, with every region. That does not exclude anyone: it is inclusive, and it promotes trade across the board.

A number of points were made about listening to industry and supporting further education. Obviously, Minister Archibald has already taken steps to do that and has continually supported the skills pipeline. We will continue to see more of that and support it as well. Regional balance was brought up on numerous occasions in the debate. The ESRI report shows the benefits of that. It shows the benefits across Ireland, but particularly in regions such as mine, which have lost out not just because of political decisions taken here at Stormont prior to the Good Friday Agreement but because of decisions taken in the South that meant that the border communities suffered. We have an opportunity now to rectify that, work together and support our economy right across the island. We talked about having more fiscal powers and fiscal levers. They were mentioned by the Minister and Mr O'Toole. We looked at the fact that the fiscal framework and the Fiscal Commission report were produced in 2022. Some of the things that we would like to see the benefits of are the apprenticeship levy, partial income tax, stamp duty and airport duty, to name just a few. I am happy to hear whether anyone has any objections to those. We need to support our businesses by ensuring that those with the broadest shoulders can carry and support people in the North and that those burdens do not fall back on constituents. Mr Burrows cited stats on unemployment. I have not seen those, but I am happy to give way to the Member if he wants to clarify them. They certainly do not chime with any of the economic data that I have seen. Ms McLaughlin talked about the synergies and the productivity of SMEs, and those things are really beneficial. We need to hear about them and look at what we can do better. On Mr O'Toole's and Ms McLaughlin's points —.

We do, but we need to look at economic inactivity, because it is one of the key barriers that holds back people here. I say this to the Member: I agree with you in part, but you should be championing all-Ireland benefits to business in your constituency just as much as I do in mine. I also note that we talked about legislation. The Economy Minister is introducing eight pieces of legislation in this mandate, compared with one in the past 10 years. I am tight for time. Just to conclude, the report is hugely beneficial. It offers huge policy opportunities, and it shows the benefits of collaboration, cooperation and working together.

1,432 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 14:31 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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