The Stormont Executive’s consistent failure to make ‘pro business’ decisions is holding back Northern Ireland’s economy and stifling local growth, Alliance Leader Naomi Long MLA has said.
She was speaking ahead of launching the party’s new Blueprint for Economic Growth in a speech to business leaders at an event in the Stormont Hotel today (8 October).
The East Belfast MLA argued that government ministers have not done enough to tackle the cost of doing business crisis, address Northern Ireland’s infrastructure deficit or provide the stability that firms need to invest.
“Northern Ireland’s economy has massive untapped potential, but unlocking that growth and attracting more inward investment requires the kind of pro business decisions that Ministers have consistently failed to deliver”, the Alliance Leader said.
“Whether its fixing business rates, helping firms with sky-high energy costs, addressing blockages in the planning and wastewater systems, or closing the skills gap, time and again the calls for help from local business leaders have fallen on deaf ears. Businesses have very little trust or confidence in the Executive to understand their needs, and we must turn that around and give them hope that a more prosperous future is possible.
“Northern Ireland needs a new blueprint for economic growth – one that is genuinely informed by the voice of the business community and creates the conditions they need to succeed. That includes a stable political and policy environment where we ditch the dysfunction of the past and prioritise ambition and practical solutions instead.
“This is vision for Northern Ireland’s economy that I am committed to, and it is the only way we will unlock our economic potential, attract talent and investment from around the world, and support local businesses to thrive.”