Good morning ladies and gentlemen.
It was only two short years ago I was in Dundalk and I met Louise and her team on the occasion of the announcement of the creation of 1,000 new jobs.
The PayPal success story goes on - we are here today to announce that PayPal is to create an additional 400 new jobs in Dundalk over the next 4 years.
By any standards this is a tremendous vote of confidence in Ireland and especially in Dundalk. To enter into a commitment to expand this facility for the second time in less than 2 years is a terrific boost for the Government in its work to build job creation and develop the economy.
As you know I recently had the opportunity to visit Silicon Valley where I met with industry leaders across many different companies to outline why they need to be in Ireland.
I especially enjoyed my meeting with John Donahoe, the CEO of eBay Inc, who told me of his satisfaction of investing in Ireland and Dundalk.
I reiterated the point to John that Ireland is a country with a plan.
That we intend to keep making the changes required to make Ireland more attractive for jobs and investment.
That this Government has a creditable plan to get debt and borrowing under control by eliminating the deficit by 2018 and to return the country to full employment by 2020.
I’m delighted that John, Louise and the rest of the eBay team have followed up that meeting with this announcement of 400 new jobs in Ireland. These jobs are supported by the Government through the Departments of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation with the IDA.
PayPal and eBay have been very good friends of Ireland since eBay first established an operation in Dublin in 2004. The companies’ expansion since then has been truly impressive - between Blanchardstown and Dundalk a total of almost 3,000 jobs will be in place by 2018 - a truly remarkable achievement.
This investment will increase Dundalk’s importance in the company’s overall activities and by developing new functions and expanding Dundalk’s footprint as a key site within the global company it enhances the long-term status of the Dundalk operation.
The Government is committed to helping create the right environment and provide the right structures and supports to facilitate this growth.
Even through the worst of times recently, the multinational sector has been a solid bedrock of economic activity. Levels of Foreign Direct Investment have held up well across a number of sectors.
The multinational sector has great potential to create even more jobs around the country, and the knowledge-based sectors in particular are considered by Government and IDA Ireland as key for Ireland in its economic recovery. Ireland is one of the best places in the world to do business.
We know that because international surveys consistently place us in the top half dozen locations and, more importantly, because the corporations which have invested in Ireland tell us so.
The focus now is to promote jobs and growth. Last year we saw 61,000 new jobs created in the economy, a faster rate than any other economy in the EU or the OECD. The Government will continue to work hard to deliver on its promise of jobs and growth.
This Government is pro-business and proud to always be to the forefront of the minds of global business leaders as they make critical investment decisions.
I am very impressed with PayPal’s success to date and the success of the wider eBay operations. The new jobs that are being created in Ireland provide a great vote of confidence in the employees at its plants here in Ireland and indeed in the country as a whole.
Thank you again for the opportunity to speak with you today. I want to thank Louise Phelan and the team in PayPal for this important investment and to assure the company of the Government’s on-going support.
I wish your company and its employees every success in the future.