merrion street

Taoiseach Enda Kenny today addressed his first public event since arriving in Washington as part of his St Patrick’s Day trip to the United States.

The Taoiseach spoke of the new Government’s plan for economic recovery, and of the business and cultural relationship between Ireland and America.

Mr Kenny said:

 Some 95,000 Irish people are employed by US companies using Ireland as a gateway to 500 million European consumers.  Irish companies in turn employ 82,000 Americans across all 50 states. 

It is has never been more important that we build on these links and look ahead to the future. Ireland is a small, open, globalised economy. We stand or fall by our economic connections with the world around us.   Our greatest assets are our unique relationship with the United States and our position at the heart of Europe. The new Government which I lead will ensure that those key relationships are protected, nurtured and developed.

Mr Kenny continued to speak of the new Government’s commitment to economic recovery and the strengths he said would be key to coming out of recession:

President Kennedy, when he was elected to lead this country 50 years ago this year, told the American people that “I have not asked for a single programme which did not cause one or all Americans some inconvenience, some hardship or some sacrifice”. 

And that it is how it will be for my Government. We know what we have to do. We will get our economy moving, restore confidence, fix our banking system and support the protection and creation of jobs.

Despite our well-documented difficulties, we have important strengths to build on. W are a flexible open economy so, while we were affected by recession faster than others, we can also come out of recession faster.

Ireland exports 80% of what it produces.  Despite the global downturn, our exports have had continuous growth for the past 20 months. By the end of 2011, we expect exports to be above our record pre-recession level.

The Taoiseach also stressed that the corporate tax rate would remain and the investment of major companies such as Google into Ireland:

 And let me repeat here today what I made clear at the recent meeting of the European Council - our 12.5% corporate tax rate, transparently and evenly-applied, is here to stay. 

There has never been a better time to invest in Ireland. And you don’t need to take my word for it. Ask Intel, Google, eBay, Facebook, Citigroup or Boston Scientific – just some of the world-class global companies that expanded operations or increased their R&D in Ireland in the last year. They know Ireland and right now they see a bright future.

In conclusion, the Taoiseach highlighted the important points of his message:

This is the message of the new Government:

 Ireland is open for business

 We have a strong and stable Government for National Recovery

 We will do what is necessary to rein in our debt and bring our public finances and banks into proper order

 We are committed to our place at the heart of Europe

 We are committed to attracting inward investment, including retaining a stable, competitive corporate tax rate. 

 We have a growing set of home-grown companies with more management skills and ambition, and more technological prowess than ever before

 We are a young country, well-educated, adaptable and determined

That is why Ireland will come back. The process of replenishment, of recovery and of renewal is already underway.