Ireland primed to be EU digital ‘centre of excellence’

The new head of the representative body for US companies operating here has said Ireland has the potential to become a digital data ‘centre of excellence’ for the EU.

“Ireland is uniquely positioned to seek new opportunities. One area we’ve focused on is the incredible potential of the digital economy across all business sectors in Ireland,” said new American Chamber of Commerce Ireland president James O’Connor, who heads up Microsoft’s EMEA operations centre in Dublin.

While it remains “too early” to know how President Trump’s policies may affect inward investment to Ireland, Mr O’Connor said Ireland must work to maintain its competitiveness and attractiveness to investors — particularly in the areas of education, costs and infrastructure.

He added the Chamber would be emphasising to Government the need to address “the globally uncompetitive personal taxation regime in Ireland.”

“The Ireland-US business relationship track record is second-to-none, but Ireland must be extremely vigilant in face of changes on the world stage that could impact our competitiveness when it comes to future investment decisions,” he said.

“The challenge of Brexit, and various changes of leadership, mean that it is imperative we constantly review our policies in relation to competitiveness, skills and talent, and investment in infratstructure to make sure we retain and advance our current strong positioning.”