New York Irish Network Launches New Era With Northern Politicians

The Irish Network began a new era in northern Irish relations after co-hosting an exclusive lunch with Stormont Assembly Ministers Gerry Kelly and Jeffrey Donaldson in New York last week.

The conference lunch, cited by both politicans as "significant" and an excellent breakthrough in developing ties between New York and the north of Ireland, was organized by Northern Ireland Bureau team Lorainne Turner, Head of the New York branch and its Director, Norman Houston, who welcomed the preliminary meeting as "very helpful".

Mr Houston said the conversation had developed promising ideas and ways to take the agenda of future liaison between the two regions forward and all parties agreed to the creation of a working committee to further the work achieved.

The Irish Network NYC, aimed at honing the recent wave of the Irish professional diaspora and putting on networking events, hosted the lunch with the intent of forging stronger alliances between the north of Ireland and Irish professionals in New York and the event, held in India House off Wall Street in downtown New York, brought both politicians together with the Irish Network and the NI Bureau to discuss means of mutually beneficial contact.

Both Mr Donaldson and Mr Kelly took turns to praise the success of the Network and to cite the benefits of working together to encourage investment into the north. 

In particular, both politicians acknowledged that the economic failures brought about by the Troubles, meant that much young talent fled Irish shores and the difficulty faced at home now was how to retain and attract talent and investment.

Despite an excellent education standard among young people in the north of Ireland, job prospects were low as inward investment was only recently being initiated following the peace process.   

But many advantages still stand to invite foreign investment into the region, not least of which is the high education of the population, good infrastructure, a competitive economy and the low cost of doin business there.

Sinn Fein Junior Minister, Gerry Kelly MLA, said there was a "willingness, an energy" about moving this agenda forward and "what you are doing here is to make a substantial difference.  We're here to learn," he said, adding "but we want this to be a continuing relationship. 

"We want to learn from yourselves.  I'm a representative from north Belfast where there is great deprivation and there is a great opportunity in the north and a hunger for investment.  We're here to learn."

DUP Junior Minister, Jeffrey Donaldson MP MLA, said that the economy in the north had "a lot going for it" and "infrastructure and tourism was a very important component driving that forward."

He said that the north had a "bit of a buffer at the moment" compared to other regions suffering economically in the current global credit crunch and that the region wasn't suffering as much as other areas. 

A lot of work had been done, he said, but that more had to be done.  Commending the Network for its work, Mr Donaldson said that the meeting was productive and "very informative" and promised to help the work of the Network.

The NI Bureau has agreed to facilitate a joint working group to further the ideas developed at the meeting including bringing over northern Irish talent as keynote speakers at Network events and to look into bringing over young people to the States to gain valuable work experience and later to return home, bringing that best practice with them, where local Irish business will benefit from their knowledge.

Following a successful meeting, all parties agreed to take the agenda further.