Brexit can open the doors for Drogheda
CROSS BORDER SHOPPING A CONCERN, BUT REGION IN PRIME LOCATION TO BENEFIT
THE world has been thrown into uncertainty following Britain’s momentous decision to leave the EU but already Drogheda Chamber of Commerce are working to find a ‘silver lining’ for the town.
Chamber President Eddie Phelan said that while Drogheda will undoubtedly be affected by what’s happening across the water and closer to home across the border, the local business community must work to ‘‘minimise the negatives and maximise the positives’.
Mr Phelan said the focus for Drogheda must now be on attracting businesses considering relocating their services outside of the UK to the local area, particularly those in the financial services sector.
‘ They have to be concerned about their ability to trade across Europe and they have to be looking elsewhere,’ he said. ‘Whereas you don’t want to capitalise others difficulties you also have to be open to opportunities and see what silver linings we can take from it.
‘We have a number of companies in Ireland who also have a base in the UK and I’m sure they’re going to be considering basing their assets in Ireland as a safer option.’
THE Brexit leave vote in Britain will undoubtedly have an impact in Drogheda but the local Chamber of Commerce are working to see how the business community locally can ‘minimise the negatives and maximise the positives’ according to Chamber President Eddie Phelan.
Mr Phelan said the focus for Drogheda must now be on attracting businesses considering relocating their services outside of the UK to the local area, particularly those in the financial services sector.
‘ They have to be concerned about their ability to trade across Europe and they have to be looking elsewhere. We have a lot going for us in terms of language, infrastructure, proximitiy to the border,’ he said.
‘ The view we would have from within the Chamber is that yes there are going to be negatives but there are going to be positives too. Without getting too excited about either we need to look at how we can miniminse the negatives and maximise the positives,’ he said.
‘Whereas you don’t want to capitalise others difficulties you also have to be open to opportunities and see what silver linings we can take from it.
‘We have a number of companies in Ireland who also have a base in the UK and I’m sure they’re going to be considering basing their assets in Ireland as a safer option. We’d be looking at attracting those services to the region and I think we’d be well placed to cater for those jobs.’
He said that while there are some concerns about what impact the border will have given it’s close proximity to Drogheda and the affect on local shops if people return to shopping across the border as the pound continues to drop, he believes this will have a greater impact in Dundalk than it will locally.
‘ The impact of the border is going to have a greater impact in Dundalk than it will in Drogheda. I twill have somewhat of an impact but not to the same extent,’ he said.
‘For any company that’s basedin the north, if we end up creating a hard border and they are not able to trade as freely as previously with the rest of the market in the EU they would have to look at creating a base in the south. That may be smoething Dundalk may benefit from or they may look to travel further south to gain a connection to Dublin which could work in Drogheda’s favour.
‘ The biggest concern for us at the moment is not having access to a crystal ball. Not just locally but even in central government it’s the same, they are not sure where it’s going,’ said Mr Phelan.
‘A lot of the negative is not necessarily in our control and because it is not yet know what way the negotiations will go you don’t want to get too caught up in aviolding a negative that may not exist. He said like everyone else, Drogheda Chamber of Commerce had been ‘caught on the hop’ when the decision was announced on Friday morning but are already actively working on a proactive response. ‘ We’ve gone out to some of our wise elders, people who may have gone out from the chamber but who have been involved in these areas to ensure Drogheda is on the map as a possible relocation centre and also to devise a strategy to minimise the negative impact that will accrue from this.’