Government seeks to beef up Ireland's competitiveness

New powers for the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission planned as Micheál Martin hosts competitiveness summit 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin is hosting the competitiveness summit on Monday along with Tánaiste Simon Harris and enterprise minister Peter Burke. File picture: Cate McCurry/PA

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission is to be given new powers and there will be a significant investment in artificial intelligence (AI) as part of a range of measures aimed at boosting competitiveness.

On Monday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin is hosting a competitiveness summit along with Tánaiste Simon Harris and enterprise minister Peter Burke as trade talks between the EU and US enter a crucial phase.

Under plans to protect the economy, three pilot clusters will be set up to enable collaboration between businesses, research centres, and third-level institutions, in particular high-potential and high-growth sectors.

Critical skills review

A critical skills review will also be completed by the end of the year to inform how to prioritise skills-based migration for those sectors facing particular shortages, including the tourism industry.

The Taoiseach has met with most of the multinationals based here in recent months, and when he was last in US, the key message was the EU, and as part of that Ireland, is falling behind on AI because of over-regulation instead of innovation. A key focus will now be on investing in AI, speeding up policymaking, and reducing red tape to give Ireland an edge.

The meeting, which will be attended by IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, will include a presentation by Frances Ruane, chair of the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council on the recommendations in the forthcoming Ireland’s Competitiveness Challenge report.

'Major investment needed'

Mr Burke has stressed the importance of actions that must be taken now to improve the country’s competitive offering and retain jobs. He will tell colleagues that a major investment is needed to ensure we do not lose out on jobs of the future and action must to be taken now on six key areas to attract foreign direct investment.

Mr Harris will tell the summit the focus must be on working constructively to protect Irish jobs and investment and shield Irish businesses and consumers from any negative impacts.

A competitiveness action plan, expected to be finalised in the coming weeks, will help insulate businesses from some of the global trade uncertainty.

With the clock ticking to Donald Trump’s July 9 deadline, Mr Burke struck a cautionary note on Sunday, saying the “best case” scenario is now agreeing an outline framework that would then create a pathway to further negotiation between the US and EU.

“Obviously, there are number of areas that the EU are looking for, zero for zero carve-outs and favoured nation status,” he told RTÉ’s This Week.

“These centre on aviation, life science, semiconductors, and spirits,” Mr Burke said.