New Minister gets down to business

The new Parliamentary Under Secretary of State with responsibility for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, Ian Pearson, has stated his commitment to supporting Northern Ireland’s business and industry sector.

Speaking today after visits to two Belfast companies, gem and Northbrook Technology, the Minister said he was keen to reassure business leaders and the Northern Ireland workforce that the momentum gained during the three years of devolution would not be lost.

He added: "It is very important that the economy is not held back. I am determined that the voice of business will continue to be heard and I would encourage business leaders to continue with the partnership approach with government which has worked so well in the past.”

The Minister’s first visit was to gem in Lanyon Place where he was met by chairman and chief executive, Owen Lamont, and chief operations officer, Philip Cassidy.

The global email company is a locally established start-up company, set up in January 2000 to provide an email handling service for businesses. It employs 364 and operates in both Belfast and Londonderry. Gem also has a sales office in Philadelphia.

Welcoming the Minister, Mr Lamont said: “Our local ministers had a great deal of support from the business community and achieved a lot in a short space of time; however we will do everything possible to help the new minister maintain the momentum generated in the past few years.

"We believe this momentum will come not only from direct foreign investment but from indigenous businesses like our own that are growing, creating employment and bringing global businesses like Amazon and Microsoft to Northern Ireland as outsourcing clients."

Later the Minister visited Northbrook Technology, which is also based in Lanyon Place, where he was greeted by managing director Bro McFerran. The company was set up in 1998 to provide software support for its parent company, Allstate Corporation, in Illinois.

Mr McFerran said: “We welcome the opportunity to meet with the new Minister today to discuss various important matters effecting our business. Future development of our business here depends on the support that we receive, not only from Invest NI, but more particularly from our customers.

"Mr Pearson has demonstrated commitment to that development from his willingness to meet with businesses at a very early stage."

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