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Taoiseach opens Cloud Computing Summit 2011

Taoiseach Enda Kenny today opened the Cloud Computing Summit 2011 in Croke Park.

The Taoiseach spoke on a number of topics, including the Irish Economy:

As you’re all aware Ireland has faced significant challenges in recent years. While we still have plenty of work to do I firmly believe that our economic prospects remain very positive.

Our real economy is strong.

After three years of contraction the economy is now returning to growth and we expect that growth to continue at a steady pace.

Our exports continue to perform strongly with a 7% increase recorded in the first quarter of this year. A similar increase is forecast for the year as a whole.

Crucially, our balance of payments is now in surplus, proving the strength of our economic sustainability.

Our competitiveness has improved significantly. Business costs have fallen across the economy. We aim to do more. ...

The Taoiseach also spoke about Cloud Computing:

A recent report commissioned by Microsoft estimates that cloud computing could be worth €9.5billion to the Irish economy, employing up to 9,000 people.

We have already made significant progress in becoming a global cloud centre of excellence – based on our strengths in software, manufacturing and services, and the skilled workforce we have at our disposal.

Our tax regime supports the development of cloud activities alongside our significant State-backed investment in R&D.

Ireland already has significant Data Centre and Data Hosting capacity and capability.

We also have a modern and attractive legislative framework, regarded as one of the most advanced in Europe.

As a result, a formidable cluster of cloud-related activities is emerging in Ireland amongst the subsidiaries of the world’s leading ICT companies such as IBM, HP, Microsoft, Dell and Salesforce.com ...

Read the Taoiseach's full speech here