DERRY: Enterprise Minister Jonathan Bell was the guest speaker at the local Chamber of Commerce lunch in the City Hotel on Wednesday.
The Minister was well received by Chamber members, but the message that the Executive must resolve its difficulties was strongly communicated to him.
In his welcoming speech, Chamber President, Mr. Gerry Kindlon urged the Minister to do what he could to ensure the talks about the future of the Executive would be fruitful.
“The business community here in the North West and , in particular, the members of the Londonderry Chamber of Commerce, want all our politicians to find a way forward. “So good luck Minister with the ongoing talks. You and everybody else involved carry our best wishes, but please understand the urgency with which the business community needs to see it resolved,” said Mr. Kindlon.
“The business environment in the North-West is challenging.
“This year, political instability and currency fluctuations have tempered confidence. No matter how one packages them, our employment statistics are still the worst in all the UK,” he added.
Mr. Kindlon expressed appreciation for the work of Invest N.I. and DETI for their support in attracting OneSource Virtual and Metaverse to the city, but emphasised that more must be done to reinvigorate the economy of the region.
He urged the minister to support further job creation initiatives, the expansion of the Magee campus in line with the One Plan and the relocation of the Tourism Information Centre to a city central location.
