The Lord Mayor of Dublin Cllr Eibhlin Byrne has called on the Government to recognise the importance of Dublin as a city region and focus on encouraging further growth in the capital. The Lord Mayor has requested the Minister's support of her plans to hold a summit meeting of business interests in the city, out of which will come a marketing plan for Dublin.
Brian Lenihan, T.D., Minister for Finance, joined the Lord Mayor, Councillor Eibhlin Byrne, today as she hosted the first in a series of quarterly meetings in the Mansion House, aimed at strengthening existing links and forging new partnerships between the public and private sectors.
Lord Mayor Byrne said: “Despite a downturn in the economy, business in the city is still vibrant and we have to continue to build on that vitality. The capital city is the driver of prosperity for any country. If we don’t drive Dublin forward, the rest of the country will languish in its wake. If Dublin continues to prosper, the rest of the country will follow.”
John Tierney, City Manager, Margaret Sweeney, President, Dublin Chamber of Commerce, Gina Quinn CEO, Dublin Chamber; Tom Coffey CEO, Dublin City Centre Business Association, Richard Guiney, CEO of Dublin City Centre Business Improvement District (BIDS), Patricia Callan, CEO of Small Firms Association, Cllr. Michael Donnelly Chair of Finance Strategic Policy Committee; Kathy Quinn, Head of Finance, Dublin City Council also attended the meeting.
EU analysis reveals city regions are drivers of economic development, creating growth, innovation and employment. Rather than competing with other cities in Ireland, Dublin competes with medium sized city regions outside of Ireland for investment, tourism and funding - cities like Copenhagen and Amsterdam.
“To focus on Dublin is not to the detriment of the west or south or any other region of the country. They are not in competition with Dublin”, confirmed The Lord Mayor.
The Lord Mayor noted that when it comes to Irish commercial delegations going abroad and persuading investors to do business here, the Lord Mayor can sometimes open doors that commercial companies can’t access on their own.
“I don’t intend to wait for people to come to us – I intend to invite visiting business delegations to come to the Mansion House to meet with them and encourage them to consider investment in the city. The Mansion House should have an economic, as well as a social role,” Councillor Byrne added.
John Tierney, Dublin City Council’s City Manager, said: “The Council has a duty of care to business in the city. Promoting linkages between local and national government will benefit business as well as everyone else. Together we can achieve so much more than any of us can on our own.
Councillor Michael Donnelly said “Dublin is a commercially vibrant City with a strong ongoing trading and retail record. The City Council is determined to play a central role in partnership with the business community and the government in promoting Dublin’s attractiveness for investment in both good quality jobs and a good quality way of life”
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