Skip to main content
  • The CBI chevron_right
  • CBI speaks out on absence of leadership in Northern Ireland

CBI speaks out on absence of leadership in Northern Ireland

Stressing the importance of re-establishing power sharing at Stormont.

25 Oct 2018, 2 min read

Speaking at the Titanic Belfast before an invited audience, CBI President John Allan shared with attendees the belief that leadership and compromise is desperately needed, and will enable decisions to be made that can improve people’s living standards. Decisions should also be made to progress critical infrastructure projects such as the north/south interconnector, A5 upgrade, Belfast transport hub and Belfast power station.

The CBI calls for an end to this decision-making paralysis as part of its campaign to empower local civil servants in the absence of an inclusive devolved government.

Let me deliver a message from our members to politicians here. It is time to do what you were elected to do – govern.

It’s not just Brexit. It’s about a billion pounds worth of Northern Irish infrastructure projects awaiting a decision. It’s failure to reform the health system, failure to deliver a regional Industrial Strategy.  Northern Ireland deserves better.
— John Allan, CBI President

Adrian Moynihan, Head of First Trust Bank, also spoke at the event and weighed in on the issue of navigating complex and uncertain times in the absence of devolved power.

He said:

“As we enter the final stages of Brexit and in the absence of a devolved government in Northern Ireland, it is critical that the business community continues to prioritise partnership and collaboration, working together to ensure our collective voice is heard."