Stormont’s First and Deputy First Ministers and the Taoiseach have told a conference they want to “supercharge” the economic corridor between Belfast and Dublin in the coming years.
Belfast’s International Conference Centre (ICC) hosted the event on Thursday, which brought together politicians, businesspeople, educators and others to discuss the work of the Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor (DBEC).
DBEC is a network of eight councils and two universities along the route connecting the two largest cities on the island.
Speakers at the conference included representatives of Almac, SONI, Open AI Ireland, Belfast Harbour, Glen Dimplex, and Keelings.
The First and Deputy First Minister opened the conference, speaking about the opportunity to “build a resilient economy” and to “create a world-class, thriving, competitive and sustainable corridor”.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill said the “thriving” all-island economy “has vast, unrealised potential” and that the corridor can “drive sustainable economic growth”.
Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly added that the Executive would do “everything in our power” to work with DBEC to make progress.
The Taoiseach had been due to attend the conference but cancelled in order to meet President Zelensky of Ukraine at Shannon Airport.
Micheál Martin spoke about the €500m (£412m) investment his government has made through the Shared Island Fund in recent years, saying that the Irish Government will continue to invest in the area in the coming years.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin addressed the conference via a video message
The area between Belfast and Dublin contains 2.2m people, over a third of the island’s population, along with 38% of its business base.
Margaret Hearty, chief executive of InterTrade Ireland, said that cross-border trade “is at an all-time high — 2023 was at €15bn [£12.37bn]. What’s really encouraging is that 80% of that trade is SME generated. The economy is transforming: we know there are opportunities with all-island supply chains.”
Ms Hearty added that she wants to see exports and productivity grow in both jurisdictions.
The conference also heard a recorded conversation with Mayor of Manchester Andy Burnham and Mayor of Liverpool Steve Rotheram, who spoke about the benefits that cities can find in working together, even while maintaining competition.
They gave the example of Eurovision 2023, which Liverpool beat Manchester to host but which still provided economic benefits to the Lancastrian city through increased numbers of tourists using Manchester Airport.
Some speakers described the challenges that exist in working along the Dublin-Belfast corridor.
Michael Lohan, the chief executive of IDA Ireland, said he “never saw a border” when growing up in the border counties and experienced easy travel up to Fermanagh and Tyrone. However, he said the border has become difficult for employers either side of it, with regulations and other barriers.
Meanwhile, a representative of SONI told the conference that “lessons have been learned” about delivering cross-border infrastructure projects.
SONI is trying to build a North-South interconnector, which would aim to improve electricity supply by connecting the electricity grids in the Republic and NI via a 400kV overhead cable.
The project has been held up by legal challenges and strong opposition from some local groups.
Kevin O’Neill, director of strategy and regulation at SONI, said that the company has learned lessons about “bringing communities along with them” when planning and delivering big projects.