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Minister Bruton leads 5-day St Patrick’s Day “Promote Ireland” mission to Italy

Minister Bruton leads 5-day St Patrick’s Day “Promote Ireland” mission to

Italy

16 business events involving over 100 companies as part of 20 meetings and

events on intensive mission

#AllAboutJobs

15th March 2014

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton TD this

morning (Saturday 15thMarch) departs on a 5-day trade, investment and

tourism mission to Italy.

The mission comes as part of the Government’s Ministerial-led St Patrick’s

Day “Promote Ireland” programme, which will see 27 Ministers visit 35

cities across 23 countries to take part in over 100 business events and 80

high-level political meetings involving hundreds of companies.

Minister Bruton mission will include:

· 7 events and meetings aimed at supporting Irish companies seeking to

grow their exports to Italy

· 5 meetings aimed at attracting multinational investment to Ireland

· 4 further business and trade-related events

· 4 diplomatic/cultural events to coincide with St Patrick’s Day.

Trade between Ireland and Italy been strong over the past number of years,

with total exports from Ireland to Italy reaching €2.3 billion in 2013. The

range of products and services that are traded between our two nations is

considerable – from medical devices to dairy products, telecommunication

equipment to consumer goods.

Italy is a G8 member with an economy of €1.39 trillion euro, and is

Ireland’s 4th largest export market in Europe. Approximately 252,000

Italian tourists visited Ireland in 2012, an increase of 14.5% over the

previous year.

This is the 20th major trade and investment mission that Minister Bruton

has led since taking office three years ago. The number of Enterprise

Ireland trade missions has doubled since the launch of the Action Plan for

Jobs. Speaking before leaving Dublin this morning, Minister Bruton said:

“The Irish economy is in a transition from the old, failed model reliant on

property and debt to the new, sustainable model we are building based on

enterprise, exports and innovation. Ministerial-led trade and investment

missions form a key part of our plan to build that new economy, continue

increasing our exports and create jobs. Since 2011 we have more than

doubled the number of Ministerial-led Enterprise Ireland trade missions,

and the St Patrick’s Day ‘Promote Ireland’ programme plays a key part in

this too.

“The plan is working. Employment in exporting sectors continues to

increase, driving the overall employment growth we have seen recently with

private sector jobs increasing by 1600 per week over the past year,

compared to the loss of 1600 per week which was happening between 2008 and

2010.

“Italy is a key trade and investment partner, with over exports of over

€2billion from Ireland to Italy in 2013, and around 300 Irish-owned

companies currently active in the Italian market. I look to using the focus

that St Patrick’s Day brings to build on the strong relationships that

exist already, further grow our exports and create the jobs we need”.

NOTES TO EDITORS

The Action Plan for Jobs includes a commitment by Government to carry out

an intensive programme of Ministerial-led trade and investment missions.

Since the Plan was launched in early 2012 the number of trade missions led

by Enterprise Ireland, for example, has doubled, from an average of 8

(2007-2011) to an average of 17 (2012 and scheduled for 2013).

This is Minister Bruton’s 19th major trade/investment mission in almost

three years since taking office in March 2011.

The 19 previous missions undertaken comprise:

· Six IDA investment missions to the USA, three to the east coast, two

to the west coast and one encompassing the East Coast, South and

Mid-West

· Seven Enterprise Ireland trade missions, one to Texas, one to the

south-eastern USA, one to India, one to Saudi Arabia and India, one

to Singapore and Malaysia, one to Canada and one to France

accompanied by hundreds of Irish companies looking to break into new

export markets

· A 7-day joint EI/IDA mission to China led by the Taoiseach in 2012,

and a further joint EI/IDA mission to China and Japan led by Minister

Bruton in 2013

· A EI mission to the Gulf led by the Taoiseach in January 2011

· A 5-day EI/IDA trip to the west coast of the USA built around St

Patrick’s Day 2012

· A 4-day mission to Germany around St Patrick’s Day 2013, and a 2-day

mission to Germany around St Patrick’s Day 2011, including a series

of meetings arranged by IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Bord Bia and

Tourism Ireland

· Missions to Saudia Arabia, Qatar and UAE in January 2014.

Ireland – Italy economic relations

Trade has been strong over the past number of years, with total exports

from Ireland to Italy reaching €2.3 billion in 2013. The range of products

and services that are traded between our two nations is considerable – from

medical devices to dairy products, telecommunication equipment to consumer

goods.

Italy is a G8 member with an economy of €1.39 trillion euro, and is

Ireland’s 4th largest export market in Europe.

Exports of Medical and Pharmaceutical products for 2013 were €729m (2012

€987m), representing the largest export sector. Organic chemicals ranked

second with exports of €351m for 2013 (2012 €375m), and Chemical Materials

& Products ranked third with €222m (2012 €231m). Italy is also the 4th most

important market for the Irish beef industry.

Exports of medical devices by indigenous Irish companies to Italy had a

value of €1.9 million in 2012, a slight increase over the previous year.

This increase is in line with indigenous Irish exports from the life

sciences sector as a whole which amounted to just under €11 million in

2012, up approximately 4.5% over 2011.

Indigenous cleantech & electronics exports were at €6.7 million in 2012 –

an increase of 31% from 2011.

Furthermore, in recent years we have witnessed an increase of nearly 50% in

the number of Irish companies with a direct presence in this market.

Approximately 252,000 Italian tourists visited Ireland in 2012, an increase

of 14.5% over the previous year.