After launching the Q4 Business Outlook survey at the beginning of January, Dublin Chamber met with Minister Neale Richmond at the Department of Finance to discuss key findings in the report as well as our priorities for the Programme for Government. Housing, transport, public safety and childcare, as well as the Passenger Cap at Dublin Airport were among the priorities central to discussions. We took the opportunity to outline our key business priorities for the new Government to the Minister and we look forward to meeting with him again under his new remit.

Following the launch of our Q4 report, Dublin Chamber also issued a press release on our findings around childcare, which received significant media coverage. Our findings appeared in Irish Times, RTE and the Irish Independent, amongst others, and Dublin Chamber was also interviewed on Morning Ireland. Results from the survey showed that nine-in-ten businesses are affected by childcare challenges to some degree, with one fifth stating that it is their primary obstacle to attracting and retaining staff. Dublin Chamber also surveyed its members on the measures that their business has implemented to help staff manage childcare constraints. Notably, three quarters of businesses are offering remote working to employees, while another 70% are offering flexible working arrangements. These are the most common tools currently being used by businesses and certainly provide much needed short term relief to working parents. Read our press release in full here.

During January, Dublin Chamber met with representatives from the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment to discuss issues around competitiveness. For the vast majority of businesses, housing continues to stand out as the leading factor damaging Dublin’s competitiveness. Followed by this is traffic congestion and mobility as well as planning delays and inadequate infrastructure. Other notable factors for businesses in Dublin include public safety, wage costs and labour taxation as well as shortages in skills. Dublin Chamber outlined these challenges to representatives in the Department, emphasising that the new government must deliver on these issues to ensure that Dublin can remain a competitive business hub. Failure to do so will not only have a detrimental impact on Dublin’s economy, but for the country overall.

Following the appointment of Cabinet this week, Dublin Chamber wrote to all of the new Ministers of the Departments covering our policy areas, including the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Department of Transport, Department of Housing and Department of Finance, to name but a few. We have offered our continued support and encouragement to the departments, recognising the pivotal role that each of them play in shaping the policies affecting business. We expect to meet with the Ministers and their Officials in the coming months and we look forward to continuing out constructive partnership with them on the issues under their remit. Read our letter to the Minister for Enterprise here.

We also wrote to new Taoiseach Micheál Martin to congratulate him on his new appointment. We outlined our business priorities for the new Government under his leadership and look forward to continued engagement with him and his Officials. Read our letter to the Taoiseach here.