merrion street

Good afternoon and thank you for the invitation to address this, your third CEO Conference, focussing on the business of Europe.

Over more than 60 years, Europe has been transformed. It has emerged from the rubble of world war and its institutions have provided a structure of economic cooperation and integration, a guardian of peace and a driver of prosperity. We have seen a transformation from six members to 27; from limited cooperation on the production of coal and steel to a vast single market; from 17 currencies to a single currency for the Eurozone.

It is our common aim to build a sustainable European future, for businesses and citizens alike.

But the European Union – and its currency – were enormously challenged over the last half decade. The European institutions faced an almost existential crisis.

The solutions came only gradually and perhaps partially – but they did arrive – and our progress is still fragile.

Central to the solution was a re-stabilisation of the currency and a re-commitment to a clearly irreversible currency union.

This commitment means a new banking union, which will govern how banks and future bank failures are supervised. Ireland will work to achieve a real banking union, including early adoption of the Single Supervisory Mechanism.

We are also committed to strengthened rules underpinning the euro and strengthened enforceability. We need a ‘grand deal’ on this, where greater solidarity is offered in return for this deeper integration.

And we are committed to a new fiscal discipline. In Ireland it meant that we asked and secured the consent of the people to changes to our Constitution, to include new rules on structural deficits.

Other changes to other mind-sets were required. The ECB has pledged to do whatever is necessary and, since the introduction of its Outright Monetary Transaction regime, the bond markets have settled.

The link between banking and sovereign debt that threatened Irish viability must and will be broken: that is the stated conviction of the European Council. It is now eight months since the Euro area Heads of State and Government agreed to sever that toxic link between banking and sovereign debt, and to improve the sustainability of this country’s adjustment programme. Work proceeds on that project.

Behind all the market uncertainty that endangered Member States was a doubt about our common political conviction and our political abilities; a doubt as to whether it might ultimately prove impossible to find a bridge between the so-called creditor and debtor member states. That doubt has now been put to rest, if somewhat belatedly.

All this is only half the battle. The continuing priorities of our Presidency are stability, growth and jobs. Stability is of course the bedrock on which growth and jobs can be built. Our primary and urgent task now is securing that growth and delivering those jobs.

Getting the European economy back on track needs a common European focus and dedication, at the highest levels. That imposes a fresh set of challenges. If there was doubt before about our common political convictions, we must admit that there is not yet a common understanding between the governments of Europe about the role of governments in stimulating demand and growth in recessionary economies. And of course many European governments have little or no present ability to undertake such a stimulus role. But, especially in debt-distressed economies, reliance on supply-side measures will not be enough to boost growth.

We must focus attention on getting the European economy back on track. This means enhancing Europe’s competitive advantage and global competitiveness, promoting economic growth, trade and investment and creating jobs.

The crisis has had many drastic economic and social effects on businesses and citizens but top of our agenda is the unacceptably high level of unemployment across the EU, not least here at home. The Government will lead a programme for the Union which targets meaningful and tangible decisions to deliver economic stability, jobs and growth.

We will endeavour to advance legislative measures and initiatives that seek to encourage job creation, while protecting the sustainability of existing jobs.

Within the unemployment challenge lies the particular crisis of youth unemployment. In Ireland, the annual fall in employment is most heavily concentrated in the 20 to 34 age group and the Government is determined to conclude an ambitious programme of work on the new proposal for a Youth Guarantee.

We must do more at national level across Europe to reduce youth employment. This means re-doubling efforts to promote young people's first work experience and their participation in the labour market.

The goal must be that, within a few months of leaving school, every young person gets a good quality offer of work or continued education or an apprenticeship or traineeship.

Ireland will of course work to finalise the Multi-annual Financial Framework negotiations. Importantly, this will in turn facilitate agreement on the Programme for Social Change & Innovation and the new Fund for European Aid to the most deprived. It can also facilitate maintenance of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund to 2020 and to extend its scope to additional categories of workers who are currently ineligible eligible.

Domestically, Ireland’s enterprise base of firms, CEOs and skilled workforces have demonstrated an ability to be successful and robust, in the teeth of the severest of external challenges.

Your leadership has allowed Ireland remain one of the best locations in the world in which to invest and do business. Your firms recruit and develop our young, well-educated population known for its flexibility and adaptability, making Ireland first in the world for the availability of skilled labour.

Ireland is now home to more than 1,000 global companies, including many of the world’s leading companies in sectors such as life-sciences, ICT, financial services and digital media. These sectors have supported the highest net job creation among our multi-national companies in a decade.

The Government has, I believe been equally active. Through our multi-annual Action Plan for Jobs process, we are identifying the many individual steps that need to be taken to rebuild our economy and competitiveness. We have assigned responsibility and ambitious timelines, and we have applied a rigour typical of the private sector to the monitoring and implementation of that Plan.

We have seen a turnaround in private sector employment; moving from net losses in the last four years to a net increase of almost 12,000 over the year. This figure has to be set against retrenchment in the banking sector and a serious reduction in public sector employment. Employment has grown in nine of the 14 economic sectors over the year, with rises in employment in sectors targeted by the Action Plan for Jobs, particularly internationally traded services, agrifood, digital gaming, ICT, medical devices, financial services, manufacturing and tourism.

We are committed to building on the progress seen to date through the roll-out of Action Plan for Jobs 2013.

All of this work on the jobs agenda complements the difficult and painstaking steps we are undertaking to ensure long-term stability to our banking sector and our public finances.

This country has met all of its Programme commitments through eight progress reports by the Troika. We are implementing a very challenging budgetary adjustment of about 20% of GDP over the period from 2008 to 2015, with most of this already achieved.

Last year, indigenous Irish exporting companies recorded their highest net jobs gain since 2006. Ireland’s competitiveness has improved by over 20% since 2009. However, an unemployment rate of 14.2% remains quite simply unacceptable.

We have continued our phased return to the bond markets which began successfully last year, and we continue to perform very strongly in attracting Foreign Direct Investment to our shores.

In the coming months, the focus for Government on the international stage will include:

• Finalising agreement on the MFF at the European Council.

• Implementing the June agreement on banking and sovereign debt, and programme stability

• Pushing for agreement on Banking Union proposals

• Attending to the important work needed on CAP and CFP reform, Horizon 2020 and on structural funds

• Stimulating growth in the digital economy

• Placing a special focus on the EU-US trade relationship, and

• Coordinating and representing EU positions on a range of pressing issues, including climate change and development policy

Ireland’s Presidency will also give priority to a credible enlargement policy, with the Croatian people to be welcomed as members on July 1st next. We will work to advance the negotiation process with Iceland, Turkey, and Montenegro. There is also the possibility of important decisions on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, and Kosovo during Ireland’s time as President.

May I venture to say a word in passing about the topical issue of Britain’s place in Europe. I recognise that this is a matter for the British people to decide. But it is also a question of our shared future.

I come to the question from the vantage point of the never-stronger friendship between our two countries. We do not want an isolationist UK. The return of tariffs or other trade barriers – or indeed borders of any kind – would be most unwelcome to us.

In their March 2012 Downing Street joint statement, the Taoiseach and the Prime Minister confirmed that we are not just partners in the European Union but that we are also strong supporters of the Single Market; we both want to encourage an outward-facing EU which promotes growth and jobs.

Both our governments share the determination to complete the Single Market and that the Single Market should in particular take advantage of digital opportunities, reflecting the growing importance of online commerce and trade, should open up service markets and should establish a genuine, efficient and effective internal market in energy.

Our shared membership of the EU has benefitted us as neighbours. Within the framework of the Union our often troubled relationship has normalised and prospered. And, I believe, the EU as a whole is stronger with Britain as part of it. The Union has come through a rocky period and the last thing it needs right now is further uncertainty about the future status of an ‘anchor’ member.

Meanwhile, this Government’s agenda is one of ongoing action to strengthen our banks, to restore the public finances, and to deliver Pathways to Work, our comprehensive labour activation programme.

We will work in co-operation with international colleagues to address the continuing dampeners to growth.

We will work at home to ensure every arm of the State is focussed on its contribution to the job creation agenda.

We will continue to reform public services to make a real and positive difference to how public servants work and how public services are delivered.

We will re-invigorate the Croke Park framework to continue to deliver the required scale of savings and reform.

In short, we will lead in our areas of responsibility to help build a sustainable European future for businesses and citizens.

The results of that work will be renewed, sustainable growth that will spur an increase in demand for goods and services – and which will provide employment for our people.

I know that Irish firms, both indigenous and foreign-owned, will have the necessary levels of skill, productivity, innovation and wit to seize these opportunities.

Thank you.