Beleaguered North catching up with recession

BELFAST BRIEFING:Just as peace had the potential to leverage the boom, the credit crunch has queered the pitch, writes Francess McDonnell

POLITICAL PROMISES carry little currency in Northern Ireland but there is a grain of hope this week that political leaders will begin to honour their pledge to try and find a way to help the North survive the economic downturn.

For the first time in five months, economic issues are back at the top of the agenda in Northern Ireland.

Politicians are set to table a motion today in the Assembly expressing their concern about the crisis in the construction industry.

The North's First and Deputy Minister will also meet key representatives from the construction industry tomorrow to hear at first hand how the industry is struggling to survive the current credit crunch. The following day, the Executive intends to devote its entire meeting to finding ways of cushioning "the effects of the recession" in the North.

Discussions are already under way about how the Executive can expedite its capital expenditure programme, which would help inject vital government spending into the local economy.

Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness have also confirmed plans to travel to the United States next month to take part in a major business conference.

The flurry of activity suggests that the North's political leaders have finally woken up to the fact that Northern Ireland is firmly in the grasp of a nasty little recession.

Politicians may have spent most of the last five months cocooned in their "justice" standoff but the rest of Northern Ireland has been battling with the credit crunch, a sharp rise in the cost of living and rapidly falling house prices.

The number of people out of work in Northern Ireland has soared to 30,300 and is expected to rise even higher in the coming months.

Northern Ireland is not unique - every region, every country, every city across the globe is suffering from the impact of the economic downturn. But what makes the downturn more pronounced in the North is the fact that, for a very brief period of time, there was a glimmer of hope that Northern Ireland's economic fortunes were finally beginning to blossom.

The peace process appeared to be finally cemented and, on the back of that, house prices, traditionally low, climbed rapidly out of all proportion to earnings.

Inward investment prospects also seemed to be about to deliver on their promises and there was an indefinable air of optimism.

Then the credit crunch arrived and Northern Ireland politicians' unfailing ability to make a bad situation worse destroyed what little chance there may have been to come up with a plan to lessen the impact of the economic downturn.

Now the North's political leaders are in the uncomfortable position of playing catch-up to a recession.

They have managed yet again to secure a new financial package from the British government - this time to the tune of £900 million - to help pay for the next instalment of devolved government. But what happens next largely depends on how successful Northern Ireland is at reinventing itself once again, and whether politicians can convince both local firms and the international business community that this time they can play ball together.

The global economic downturn has forced both local and international companies to reconsider new investment projects and Northern Ireland, in common with many locations, has suffered because of this.

According to Stephen Kingon, chairman of development agency Invest Northern Ireland, there has been no drop-off in the number of inquiries it receives from potential inward investors.

But he says it is taking much longer to bring potential inward investment projects to fruition because investors are reappraising every decision.

Kingon believes investors across the globe are deferring projects because they are focused on "cost containment" - which he believes also presents Northern Ireland with a good business opportunity

He says despite the current global economic conditions, the North offers investors a good value, cost-competitive location with easy access to a large talent bank.

This is the message which the North's First and Deputy Minister will be taking to corporate America next month.

But they might do well to heed the advice of Belfast-born David Kirk, who is one of the North's most successful software industry professionals.

In the last 35 years, Kirk has held senior positions in some of America's largest software groups including IBM, America Online and Cisco Systems, and is currently a board member of Silicon Valley's Irish Technology Leadership Group.

"There is some incredible talent in Northern Ireland - I've worked all over the world and the people I meet in Northern Ireland are as bright as anyone I've encountered," he says.

So why are software companies not beating a path to Northern Ireland despite the current climate?

Because, according to Kirk, Northern Ireland is still not on the map when it comes to attracting investment from this sector and he believes investment agencies in the North are to blame.

"You need software professionals who understand the industry to sell investment pitches to software groups.

"At the moment the pitch from government agencies is: people in Northern Ireland are good and they don't change jobs.

"The reaction that is going to garner from a large software company in the United States is a polite thank you and no follow-up.

"Government agencies need to get much more aggressive about selling Northern Ireland to potential investors - that is how they will win investment and jobs," Kirk said.

Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness should take note.