Newry Chamber hosted the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, The Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP in Newry on Monday 30th March at the invitation of the Chamber as we continue our comprehensive lobbying efforts across a wide spectrum of areas.
He was hosted by Newry Chamber President, Conor Patterson and Chamber CEO, Michael Savage and members of the Newry Chamber Executive Board in the Canal Court Hotel for roundtable discussions on the issues impacting economic development in the region.
The Secretary of State heard from a number of Chamber members about the opportunities and challenges facing Newry including access to labour, wastewater infrastructure and funding for local skills programmes.
He also heard calls for closer collaboration between the UK and Irish Governments on cross-border funding for mutually beneficial infrastructure projects in the Greater Newry/Greater Dundalk region.
As part of the visit to Newry, the Secretary of State visited MJM Marine’s HQ in Carnbane to meet the team and find out more about their exciting programme for the year ahead.
The Newry-headquartered global marine fitout company works with some of the world’s largest cruise brands on refitting bars, restaurants, cabins and public areas onboard ships.
The Secretary of State met with Naoimh McConville, Joint Managing Director of The Rathbane Group (MJM Marine’s parent company) Gary Annett, CEO of MJM Marine, members of the Executive and wider team before touring the production facilities.
Speaking after the meeting, Conor Patterson, President of Newry Chamber said:
“We would like to thank the Secretary of State for coming to Newry today and taking the time to hear at first-hand the challenges and opportunities our businesses face in this border region.”
“During our discussions, we highlighted Newry’s unique location on the border and the need for support from the UK Government on issues relating to access to labour, closer collaboration between the two sovereign governments on potential solutions to wastewater infrastructure and the need for urgent funding mechanisms to support local skills programmes.”
“The meeting was productive and the Secretary of State left with a number of items on which to come back to the Newry business community and we look forward to further engagement in the future.”
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn MP said:
“The Newry area is really important to the economy of Northern Ireland, benefiting from its location and a strong tradition of local entrepreneurship.”
“I had a really good discussion with local businesses about the challenges and opportunities they face, including skills, the supply of labour, the Windsor Framework and the constraints on development as a result of lack of wastewater infrastructure.”
“The UK Government is committed to boosting economic growth through the Industrial Strategy and the £30 million in Local Innovation Partnership funding for Northern Ireland.”