The Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said today that trade uncertainty is having an effect already on economic growth and on sentiment regarding investment and how economies will grow in the future.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne, Mr Donohoe said the Irish economy “thankfully” continues to grow well and the Government has outlined “three major projects” to respond to the level of uncertainty.
He said Enterprise Ireland is engaging with employers and firms to look at how they can assist them, adding that the level of intervention back from the Government to this kind of difficulty is “different to where we have been in the past”.
“It will be about helping companies diversify, it will be about helping them find new markets, and most importantly, when we’re still in a period of negotiation, is influencing the common stance of the European Union on this issue, which we are actively doing,” he said.
The Minister said that while he would “love” to see EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet with US President Donald Trump, what is critical at the moment is that Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič is in regular contact with his counterpart.
“That really is the key relationship. That relationship is, to put it mildly, very busy at the moment,” he noted.
Minister Donohoe said that given the political focus on this issue in the US, companies will be “carefully considering” investment decisions that they will make.
He said that if they want to “prosper and grow” within the European Union, it is important to have a presence within the European Union.
“Ireland and the EU can offer such clarity regarding how we can tax you, what our trade policy will be, how we will support innovation,” he said.
“That, I believe, matters to their long term sucess. That’s the argument, company by company, the Government is making,” he added.
The Minister also said that while he understands the cost of living is still a “really big problem” for so many people, the rate of inflation is now “far lower” than it has been in recent years.
He said the “big supports” the Government made available when inflation was “well in excess of 10%” cannot be made available now when inflation is so much lower than it was a few years ago.
He said his “number one job” for the coming year is to focus on keeping jobs in Ireland and keeping the public finances safe to ensure continued investment in homes and public services.
“A consequence of making a case for that is then saying that the many additional billions of euros that we spent on other measures in recent years, that it’s not appropriate to repeat them,” he added.
