Heather Humphreys, Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, this morning expressed disappointment in relation to Ireland’s position in the latest rankings of the IMD Competitiveness Yearbook. She said she is committed to working with colleagues across Government to continue to prioritise pro-business policies that enhance Ireland’s competitiveness.
Minister Humphreys said:
After several years of improvement, the decline in Ireland's overall ranking in this year’s IMD publication is disappointing. What it tells us is that we cannot become complacent about the hard-won gains of recent years. Despite the fall in competitiveness, it is also important to remember that we are the 3rd most competitive economy in the Euro area.
I am acutely aware that Ireland’s competitiveness is hugely important to our continued business and economic success and the National Competitiveness Council will review the findings in detail. In tandem with this, my officials will examine the Report to establish what actions we can take to further improve our competitiveness.
The Minister stressed that indices, while useful, are imperfect measures of competitiveness, and a number of the IMD indicators are perception-based and therefore subjective in nature. In some instances, Ireland’s ranking is not a question of absolute deterioration or improvement in these categories but rather a matter of other countries improving their position relative to ours.
She continued:
In spite of the rankings, Ireland’s improved competitiveness is reflected in strong employment growth across sectors and regions. The impressive performance of clients supported by the enterprise agencies in winning exports, market share and job creation in the face of intense global competition is to be commended. This reflects the competitiveness of the environment in which to do business in Ireland.
The Minister highlighted that Ireland’s decline in the rankings shows global competition is intense, stressing that the IMD report is a timely reminder of the importance of remaining competitive in a global environment.
Project Ireland 2040, which is designed to future-proof our economy, heralds a €116bn investment in our country’s infrastructure. Public capital investment will therefore move from relatively low levels in recent years as a result of the economic crisis, to being amongst the highest in the EU. This will allow us respond to the obvious deficits in our infrastructure, as well as the needs of a fast-growing population, all of which will positively impact on our competitiveness.
As recognised by the IMD, many of Ireland’s traditional assets continue to remain competitive. Ireland is ranked first in the world by the IMD for productivity in industry and the flexibility and adaptability of our workforce. We also perform well in relation to attracting and retaining talent (5th), the competitiveness of our tax regime (2nd) and measures which consider ease of doing business (7th) and ease of starting a business (5th).
Despite the fall in the rankings, the Executive Survey shows that the tax regime, high educational level, skilled workforce, business friendly environment and dynamic economy are considered attractive by business.
The Minister continued:
Over a relatively short timeframe, we have repaired our public finances and market confidence has been restored. We have implemented changes to make our tax system more competitive in creative entrepreneurship and innovation; we have improved skill availability in key areas and made work pay. The exporting sectors of the economy, particularly companies supported by the enterprise agencies, are winning new markets and creating jobs at record levels. Employment growth throughout the economy is strong and balanced from a sectoral and regional perspective.
The Minister concluded:
As Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, I will continue to promote and prioritise policies which enhance national competitiveness and create the best possible environment for enterprise, innovation and investment across all regions. I will be working closely with my colleagues across Government to consolidate Ireland’s traditional strengths including talent, productivity and export competitiveness and address those areas where we lag behind other countries.