Today (28-August-2017) Michael D'Arcy TD, Minister of State for financial services, is in the Northwest to consult with stakeholders on his IFS 2020 Strategy priority to increase investment and employment into regional hubs.
Taking in meetings with IDA and Enterprise Ireland clients and a roundtable with local authority and academic experts, Minister D'Arcy will emphasise the win-win of forging closer links between Dublin and regional hubs. Commenting on his programme he noted,
“The Northwest is an area of great potential for expansion in financial services. Not only home to leading IDA financial services client companies, it also benefits from a stream of talent from both sides of the Border in terms of the excellent training and research programmes in the Letterkenny Institute of Technology and Magee College, University of Ulster.
This advantage also presents challenges against the background of the ongoing Brexit negotiations. I look forward to exploring how we can address these challenges and further support the Northwest developing as a leading regional hub.
By focussing on 4-5 existing regional clusters of financial service activities and better aligning them with investment in infrastructure and regional centres of expertise we have an opportunity to attract talent and investment to these regions from both Dublin and further afield.”
This programme, the second to the Northwest under the current Strategy, is the latest in a series undertaken across the country. Minister D'Arcy will continue this with the convening of a dedicated regional forum in October as well as travelling to the UK, US and mainland Europe to promote the 'IFS Ireland' brand and offering. On the wider strategic approach to the regions Minister D'Arcy commented,
“Now, mid-way through the government’s five year strategy for the sector, is the right time to review and consolidate the information and intelligence gathered from the regional programmes undertaken to date. In October I will convene a dedicated forum aimed at identifying those measures that can best support the development of regional hubs for this sector.”
Minister D’Arcy’s wider programme includes, at the request of Government Chief Whip Joe McHugh, travel to flood affected areas in the Inishowen peninsula and meetings with Údarás na Gaeltachta supported initiatives in Gweedore.
Notes to Editor:
More information on Government activity in this sector is available at www.finance.gov.ie/Ifs2020 @IRLDeptFinance and www.IfsIreland.com @Ifs_Ireland