Address by Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness
8 Jul 2009
First Minister Martin McGuinness - Credit: Kevin Cooper, PhotolineAddress by Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness
Congress Biennial Delegate Conference, 2009
Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen.
I am delighted to join you here at your Biennial Delegate Conference in the beautiful surroundings of Tralee.
It seems hard to believe that it is two years, virtually to the day, since I last addressed your delegate conference. On that occasion we were gathered in the equally beautiful surroundings of Bundoran on the North coast.
We were just a few short weeks into the fledgling new institutions and the new partnership between our various cultures and traditions but since then the fragile flower that was planted has continued to grow and take ever firmer root.
But there have been challenges which have taken many and varied forms.
There are those who have attacked the institutions and partnership working. There are those who have sought to return to conflict with attacks on soldiers and police. And there are those who have propagated sectarianism, racism and hate crime.
Those behind these attacks will fail. They will fail because the vast majority of our people are in favour of joint working, in favour of partnership, in favour of building a prosperous and inclusive society for the benefit of all.
And I want at this stage to acknowledge and thank the trade union movement for the positive role that you have played in standing up against sectarianism, racism and hate crime and against those who would wish to return us to conflict.
We have also found ourselves subject to a hugely different and immensely more challenging economic environment than we faced two years ago. Two years ago you could not have imagined that when you came together again so many of your members would have lost their jobs.
The severity with which the global economic downturn has hit us exemplifies the risks faced by small open economies. It teaches us that our economy needs to be based on solid foundations.
I could quote from a virtually endless list of predictions and projections which provide the cold facts and figures of falling economic output and contracting world economies but we are all familiar with them.
I am more concerned about the effects that this downturn has inflicted on the lives of ordinary people throughout this island.
Effects which you as trade unionists, and myself as a political representative, are all too painfully aware. The recession cannot, and must not, be used as an excuse to drive down terms and conditions of employment for ordinary workers. Ordinary workers cannot be asked to pay the heaviest price for a crisis that is not of their making.
It is their lives and futures and indeed that of their children and grandchildren that we must focus on improving. And while we work to address the employment and banking crisis we must ensure that the most vulnerable in our society continue to be protected.
The fragile nature of our economy reinforces and validates the decision of our Executive at Stormont to make the economy the top priority of the Programme for Government.
The Executive agreed a package of measures in December which were designed to protect people from the worst effects of the recession. The package included energy and fuel poverty measures, such as, maintaining investment in energy efficiency in domestic houses and providing £15 million to help those most vulnerable to fuel poverty. More than 100,000 households on pension credit and income support received £150.
I am clear that the initiatives I have outlined taken by the executive are reactive or rather defensive. They are designed to target resources to those most affected by the current recession. Those living in poverty, our families and older people living on benefits and small business and construction industry.
Lets be clear. The underlying assumptions about growth and managing the economy North and South, have failed. We are not facing a natural disaster, our economy has not been brought to its knees by a force of nature. This economic disaster has been global and man-made. And our small island, our families and communities, are bearing the brunt.
We need to look at how we get out of this recession. We need additional new measures. Measures which are proactive.
Our aim is to redress poverty and disadvantage and build a fairer and more equal society and to build an economy which is characterised by high productivity and a highly skilled workforce. We must strive to be the best educated workforce in Europe even when faced with the current financial constraints. This is the vision of sustainable economic growth.
The challenges we face in relation to the economy affect us all and it will require a united front to overcome them.
Our work can only be successful if we work in partnership.
Partnership at a political level.
Partnership with you the trade union movement.
Partnership with business.
Partnership with the community and voluntary sector.
Partnership across the length and breadth of this island.
That partnership approach is fundamental and I am convinced that if we work together we can emerge from this present crisis more quickly and stronger.
Last week in Belfast myself and the First Minister chaired the second meeting of the Cross Sectoral Advisory Forum which we set up to draw together representatives of groupings across all sectors of society and at this point I would like to say a particular word of thanks to your own assistant general secretary Peter Bunting who continues to play a leading role in that forum.
Earlier this week I was in Dublin for the latest plenary meeting of the North South Ministerial Council where Ministers from the administrations North and South gathered together to discuss the many matters of mutual interest.
Both those meetings are examples of the partnership approach and will play a part in helping us turn the corner.
We have seen examples of this already.
At Monday’s North South Ministerial Council meeting in Dublin it was pleasing to confirm the Irish government’s commitment to the A5 and A8 roads projects to Derry and Larne which will see major infrastructure investment being made before the end of the year. Anyone who doubts the interconnected nature of our economy only has to look at NAMA.
I am extremely conscious of the contribution that the construction industry makes to the economy of the North and how we in government can continue to support it. The total output from the construction sector during 2008 was in excess of £3.2bn and it currently employs some 65,000 people, including the self-employed.
With government and the public sector funding some 40% of the total construction industry turnover, it is estimated that this level of investment supports some 25,000 jobs.
Through the Investment Strategy in the North the Executive has overseen unprecedented levels of investment in roads, hospitals, schools and infrastructure which has seen spending close to £1.7billion, a level more than twice that of just a few years ago.
Accelerated productivity growth is fundamental to increased competitiveness and to long term sustainable economic performance, North and South. However this competitiveness must be based on innovation, creativity and improved work skills and not on creating a low wage economy.
Across the island we need to grasp opportunities to co-operate to our mutual economic benefit. The Comprehensive Study of the All-Island Economy makes this clear. Where the border creates impediments to faster economic growth, where public goods such as infrastructure and public services could be more efficiently provided on a co-ordinated basis then we need to collaborate and work to mutual advantage.
There are steps that we can take working together to achieve a strong competitive and socially inclusive island economy. Island wide economic clusters is one such example. Progress in key areas has already been made, such as research and development; co-operation in the education and health sectors; skills training; energy, transport and telecommunications; and trade and investment promotion
We cannot tackle the challenges we face alone. To help us deliver on our priorities, the Executive is committed to fostering and promoting North/South co-operation and collaboration, including through the North/South Ministerial Council. We will continue to take forward mutually beneficial and practical co-operation. This will help us deliver real benefits, particularly on infrastructure, trade and business, tourism, agriculture and health service provision. And in tackling major issues that confront all of us, such as social exclusion and barriers to mobility, drugs and other crime, the environment and transport.
The work of InterTradeIreland is key to accelerating trade and business growth across the island. It creates an environment which makes it easier to do business thereby increasing the competitiveness of individual companies and the economies, North and South.
In closing, these are indeed challenging times for us all. These are times of great concern for your members, many of whom have lost their jobs or seen their incomes fall over the last year. However, with the right steps, including continued all-Ireland co-operation, we can start to get the economy back on track and promote sustainable economic growth in the longer term as we eventually emerge from the current downturn. The trade union movement has a key role to play in building that better future.
Go raibh maith agaibh
