Minister looking to boost exports to Brazil

THE Government is undertaking a trade review and exploring closer links with emerging markets such as Brazil and at the same time will push scientists to work more closely with industry in a bid to increase productivity.

Enterprise, Trade and Innovation Minister, Batt O’Keeffe, said he also wanted to see greater cooperation between the country and the EU after meeting several European commissioners in Brussels.

The country needed to explore new markets, especially having a more critical look at emerging markets such as Brazil, India, Korea and Asia generally. “We export more than 80% of our production and we need more high-quality exports to create more jobs so the whole area of trade is very high on our agenda,” he said, adding that he was visiting Brazil in October.

He was due to meet the EU’s trade commissioner, Karel De Gucht, last night who last week successfully pushed for reopening of free trade talks with South America’s Mercosur countries, including Brazil. Irish farmers denounced the move as a threat to the country’s beef industry.

Mr O’Keeffe said that Ireland’s food and food additives industry was a very important focus for the country and he was very pleased that the industry and entrepreneur commissioner, Antonio Tajani, has invited an Irish nominee onto a high-level group putting together a strategy for the future.

“It is very important for us to put the focus on agriculture and food,” he said, adding that not all countries were represented on the group.

The minister said that academic researchers should be required to partner with industry at all stages of their work so that smart jobs can be created, by bringing products to market faster.

“In the future we will have to look at where the economy is going and what our industry focus should be,” he said in relation to giving research grants. He added that this did not mean moving away altogether from research in the humanities and from applied research.

“Research teams whose work has commercial potential must be required to partner with industry at all stages of their work so that there is no time lost in getting products to market and generating revenues and jobs. If there is a gap between research and retail, we must ensure it is closed.”

He said he would be asking the Finance Minister to increase the state’s investment in research.

Currently Ireland invests about 1.8% of GDP, a third from the state and the rest from private sources, which he acknowledged falls well short of theEU target of 3% and far behind Finland at 4%.