Speech by Minister Harris at the American Chamber Annual Dinner and US-Ireland Business Awards 2023

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Dia dhaoibh a chairde, agus trathnóna maith agaibh. Is onóir mhór é a bheith anseo libh arís anocht. Go raibh maith agaibh as an deis seo.

Good evening, everyone and thanks to Mark [and Seamus] for having me back again. I’m delighted to be here.

It is a genuine pleasure to be back for the second year in a row and to have the opportunity to meet with you all again.

A particular congratulations to Lorna on her award tonight and I know we will have a few more winners tonight too.

I am delighted to be joined by my Secretary General Jim Breslin, and indeed Orlaigh Quinn of the Department of Enterprise also.

And I do not wish to embarrass either of them but I am going to anyway.

Because this may be my last opportunity to publicly thank both of them. Orlaigh will shortly be moving to pastures new and Jim will be departing in September.

I really want to thank them both for their commitment to public service, their passion and dedication to the education and enterprise agenda.

While I am thanking people, I would also like to thank Elaine and Colm for the opportunity to address you again.

Elaine and I had the pleasure of visiting San Francisco together for St Patrick’s Day this year.

And it was as clear then, as it was on President Biden’s week-long, nationwide homecoming tour, that the bonds between our two great nations is as strong as ever.

We have often said there is no show like a Joe show!

And President Biden’s visit reaffirmed that.

From Belfast to Louth, Dublin to Mayo, President Biden emotionally embraced his Irish ancestry.

In doing so, he showcased the beauty and breadth of our great island to the world.

He didn't manage to make it to the best part - Wicklow but I am sure he will do so on his next visit.

Friends, we meet here tonight as our two countries continue to mark the 25th anniversary of peace on our island.

On a snowy Friday a quarter of a century ago, America helped to forge a peace deal that has lasted generations.

I remember vividly – as I am sure all of you do - the relief and the joy when the agreement was announced.

Because it was not inevitable. Impossible positions became compromises made.

Those key decisions from all sides brought a fragile yet real sense of security for the future.

There was no guarantee the Agreement would work.

And yet as we gather 25 years later, the dividends of peace are all around us.

War on the island is confined to the history books.

The Ireland of today has been shaped by our past, by that deep hurt, the division, the lost lives.

But the future of this island is yet to be defined.

I truly believe the 25th Anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement offers an opportunity for us to reflect on the past but to collectively dream and work towards a better future.

For prosperity across these islands.

America has been a loyal friend to Ireland. Our relationship has been bound by personal connections created through emigration and individual searches for independence.

America offered a home, hope and opportunity to many Irish people, who in turn have left their footprint on the United States.

It was a journey which took Irish people from the railroads and the construction sites to the schools, hospitals, the police precinct and indeed all the way to the White House.

Today, Ireland is a multicultural country.

Today many people turn to us for protection and shelter, and hope of a better future.

Over 100,000 people have come to Ireland in the past 17 months seeking refuge.

That has posed extraordinary challenges for this country.

But we will never apologise for opening our communities and our homes to people in seek of safety.

We will not allow a small group of people spread fear or sow division.

There are those who seek to dehumanise the refugee and migrant populations by referring them to as asylum seekers, rather than men, women, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters.

Ireland will never turn their back on people who need our help.

The Irish people know the despair of leaving home to find a better life.

The people protesting #IrelandisFull do not speak for the majority.

Ireland - a country of emigrants- supports immigration and the value it brings to our economy and society.

They are helping to shape and craft the modern Ireland we know.

To avoid or ignore the plight of those seeking our help would be catastrophic and an insult to our history.

Emigration was the tie that bound the US and Ireland. Today, it is a different type of relationship.

Ireland is now a thriving economy, with full employment.

Irish investment in the US is at an all-time high, with around 800 companies employing 100,000 people.

The United States is Ireland’s top export destination; about 30 percent of all Irish goods exports go to the United States.

Two-way investment between the United States and Ireland remains strong.

Ireland’s membership in the EU, our English-speaking workforce, and business-friendly environment has attracted U.S. companies to establish themselves in Ireland.

It is my belief we now have a chance to refresh and renew our relationship – and to refocus on our shared passion for education and innovation.

And that is where my department comes in. Over the past three years, we have established a new department to fuse education and enterprise.

It has a ridiculously long title but its purpose is simple.

It is our role to ensure everyone can have access to education and that everyone can use that education to fully participate in society.

President Biden rightly described Ireland as “a hotbed of cutting-edge science, research and the emerging technologies that will influence so much of our shared future”.

We believe research and innovation is the answer to many of the challenges that threaten our shared future, such as climate change, geopolitical instability and inevitable further pandemics.

But, to borrow a phrase from President Truman, we need policymakers, businesses, researchers and innovators with “courage, [imagination] and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand”.

Ireland has that talent.

The success of the Irish economy now centres on our people.

Investment in education, in innovation, in human capital is essential to deliver economic success.

You know this. This was one of the main issues your members are raising with you.

It has been said that an education is the one thing no one can take away from you. This remains true, however now it is a new conception of education.

It’s no longer something formal that happens to someone young.

It is a life course, of informal and formal learning, and it is the passport that carries and cloaks the individual through change and challenge; the business through volatility and complexity, and the collective - our country - through uncertainty and ambiguity.

If the global challenge then is to boldly and bravely embrace a fully transformed, fully 21st century model of learning and growth – the trick for Ireland that we be just as ambitious and successful in our pursuit of this as Ireland has been in its embrace of education through the last century. We have form.

Ireland has always been an island of learning, a country of creatives, and a people known for ingenuity, with capacity for change. We need not be daunted but we do have work to do.

That work has started and is paying off. In recent weeks, we have seen Analog Devices and Boston Scientific cite Ireland’s education and research systems as one of the reasons they are expanding their presence here.

We must continue to invest in research and innovation.

One of the key initiatives from Impact 2030 is to establish a new Research and Innovation agency which will help drive our ambition to become a world leader in Research & Innovation.

However, the greatest investment we can make is in our people.

This is why we are working to reduce the cost of education to ensure there is no barrier to accessing University.

Our student grant system needs to reflect that many of our people cannot pack their bags for four years to access education. This is a key Budget priority for me.

We must use the resources we have to allow for more flexible and agile ways of learning.

We are also reviewing supports for PhD researchers.

And thanks to the good work of many people in this room, we will soon launch the details of the Innovate for Ireland scheme.

A new public private partnership to attract PhD researchers to Ireland.

I want to particularly thank Brian MacCraith for his work on this important initiative.

My department is committed to maintaining Ireland’s reputation as a global hub for talent and innovation.

This requires ongoing support for skills development at all levels.

My department is currently working with the Department of Enterprise to bring policy proposals to allow for paid training leave.

Friends, I will not speak for much longer as you hopefully have a long night ahead of you.

Ireland is the only English speaking country in the European Union.

We are a bridge between America and Europe.

Our partnership emerged from the enduring bonds of history, culture and shared values that link Ireland and the United States.

It recognised that ní neart go cur le chéile – there’s no strength without unity.

As we pave our future, let’s continue to work together to ensure that Ireland remains a prime location for business and talent; to strengthen bilateral trade and investment; and to build on Ireland’s hard-won reputation as a great place to do business.

When I was here last year, I borrowed an infamous quote from one of our greatest assets.

“Hope is not optimism, which expects things to turn out well, but something rooted in the conviction that there is good worth working for.”

Unfortunately for me, Seamus Heaney is every Irish politician and President Biden’s favourite poet.

So instead I will borrow a phrase from the President himself.

As he addressed the people of Ballina, President Biden said:

"This is a moment to recommit our hearts, our minds, our ardent souls to the march of progress; to lay the foundations, brick by brick, for a better future for our kids and our grandkids — one of greater liberty, opportunity, and dignity, just like our ancestors did for us.

I’ve never been more optimistic about what we can achieve if we stick together and stick to our values. This is a time of enormous possibilities.

Let’s not squander the opportunity this anniversary brings us.

Let’s reconstruct our relationship to reflect the future, not the past.

Congratulations again to all the US-Ireland Business Award winners and I hope everyone has a very enjoyable evening.

Go raibh maith agaibh.