Posts tagged ‘Business’
Business: Jim Fitzpatrick
Monday, June 6th, 2011Jim Fitzpatrick reflects on covering local politics as he moves to being BBC Northern Ireland’s new Business and Economics Editor. If you’ve ever been to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, you will doubtless remember the weird and wonderful walkways and escalators that transport travellers around this futuristic space. You don’t get much time to decide which walkway to choose, and once you’re onboard there’s nothing you can do to alter the general direction of travel until you can jump over to another. Pressing the emergency stop is an option, but rarely a good choice. Since...[full story]
Business: Helen Alexander – Making smart choices
Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010The Executive and businesses in Northern Ireland have to get on with making difficult decisions and Northern Ireland’s residents must be “ambassadors” for the region, CBI President Helen Alexander tells Meadhbh Monahan. Speaking before the Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) announcement, Helen Alexander told agendaNi that the cuts were certain to have an impact on Northern Ireland therefore “it’s increasingly important that the difficult decisions are made; everyone has to get on with it.” Whilst in Belfast for the annual CBI lunch, the former managing director of the Economist...[full story]
Business: Can investment secure peace?
Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010A strong economy will help secure lasting peace in Northern Ireland, according to Hillary Clinton at the US-NI Economic Conference. The 60 jobs announced as fruits of the US-NI Economic Conference in Washington are key to tackling the dissident threat, Hillary Clinton claimed as she opened the the US-NI Economic Conference. Clinton said the jobs would go a long way to ending violence: “A stronger economy in Northern Ireland will help secure a lasting peace and peace in Northern Ireland is a bedrock foreign policy priority for the United States.” Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness,...[full story]
Business: Reversing R&D under-performance
Wednesday, October 6th, 2010Nola Hewitt-Dundas explains why Northern Ireland’s low innovation must be turned round. Government support has been strong but will not last at current levels. Businesses must therefore make R&D strategic rather than sporadic. A legacy of political, social and economic problems has contributed to Northern Ireland performing poorly on many of the standard economic indicators. Productivity is four-fifths of the UK average and has stayed at this level for more than a decade. Exports from Northern Ireland have contracted at a faster rate than elsewhere in the UK over the past year,...[full story]
Business: The future of work
Wednesday, October 6th, 2010Innovation and technology could considerably change the way we work in years to come. Emma Blee reports. “ICT is only just starting to reach its potential in terms of productivity”, claims the head of PA Consulting’s innovation unit, Rob Gear. In a report ‘Future Information Technology in focus,’ the firm shows how up-and-coming technologies could help employees and employers to increase their working capacities, without increasing stress or fatigue. Among others, it highlights how the technology of augmented cognition can enhance a workforce. AugCog integrates computer...[full story]
Business: Filling the funding gap
Wednesday, October 6th, 2010agendaNi considers the CBI’s plans for cutting spending and raising money, to fill Northern Ireland’s expected funding gap. Businesses have already ‘taken the hit’ in the recession and it is now time for the public sector to cut its costs, according to the CBI. Its pre-spending review report, ‘Time for action: Northern Ireland – delivering public services in a time of austerity’ predicts the UK Government to take between £1.6 billion and £2.0 billion out of the public sector over five years. For context, the June Budget estimated that the block grant for 2009-2010 was...[full story]
Business: A modest recovery
Thursday, June 3rd, 2010Economic recovery will be “sluggish by historic standards”, according to Ian McCafferty. Speaking at the annual CBI economic briefing, McCafferty reminded delegates that recovery induced by a financial crisis tends to be “twice as deep and lasts longer” than a recovery that is brought about through government policy or decisions. Economies across the world are currently showing “upbeat signals”, he said. “It was only a year ago we were talking about a free-fall in the global economy.” However, inter-bank rates have normalised, falling to rates “not seen since before...[full story]
Business: Quinn cuts
Thursday, June 3rd, 2010Over 900 redundancies have been announced at Quinn Insurance following three months of turmoil at the company. Meadhbh Monahan reports. After it was taken out of control of the wider Quinn Group and placed into administration following “serious and persistent breaches” of the solvency rules in March, Quinn Insurance Ltd (QIL) was ordered to stop writing policies in the UK. They have since been allowed to re-open to all private motor drivers in the UK, but on 30 April the company announced the redundancies saying: “although regrettable and painful for the employees and their families,...[full story]
