Invest NI

Is Invest NI creating new jobs or just subsidising existing jobs?

Brian O'Neill on September 28, 2021, 11:10 am | Readers 2195

The online fashion retailer Asos is planning to create 184 jobs at a new tech hub in Belfast. From the BBC story: The global firm, which is popular with younger people, will recruit over the next three years with 52 of the jobs in place in the first year. The company is investing £14m in the permanent base which will be operational early in 2022. Recruitment is already underway with a range of roles including in engineering and data science. …

Blaming poor investment policy on a single government agency is surely missing the point?

Mick Fealty on December 7, 2015, 1:03 pm | Readers 1188

INFRASTRUCTURE FIRST: There is a need to channel wealth outwards to the west and downwards to the poorer parts of society. But taking effective responsibility for that requires a political acceptance of broader agency, not just heaping blame on public officials for doing their job within current politically preloaded constraints.

“Entrepreneurship is a physical contact sport” … yet NI has a poor record on tech incubators

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on September 21, 2015, 8:30 am | Readers 1117

ACCELERATORS: For all its hype about having a burgeoning tech scene, Belfast has been incredibly slow to bother opening low-cost, short-term incubator spaces for new ideas to be thrashed out before attracting investment. Alan caught up with accelerator expert JON BRADFORD before he travels across to speak at the ICONS Festival this Friday.

raising an old issue like employment

John Ó Néill on February 10, 2012, 10:34 am | Readers 63

At the moment, as Pete flagged a couple of days ago, Bill Clinton is doing some heavy lifting in the US for job creation on behalf of the Republic of Ireland’s government. Over at the Belfast media group, Jude Collins provides an interesting contrast, highlighting the uneven results of Invest NI’s work: During 2010/2011, Invest NI managed to secure NOT A SINGLE JOB in West Belfast. Yet year after year, south and east Belfast attract shed loads more money via Invest …

Invest NI respond about their (lack of) relationship with Walsh Doherty and David Walsh

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on January 4, 2012, 4:50 pm | Readers 196

Following on from last night’s post, Invest NI have responded to questions that were raised about their relationship with Walsh Doherty and David Walsh. Partially (or wholly) in response to David H. Kirk’s criticisms about Invest NI’s “strategy and intervention in Northern Ireland’s investment ecosystem” and the report he gave Invest NI – concerns which are not universally shared across the sector – a meeting of the Access To Capital Stakeholders Forum was scheduled by Invest NI for mid-October, and …

NI’s venture capital scene has a dark corner

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on January 3, 2012, 11:39 pm | Readers 341

Mick hinted at the details in his earlier post, but the story deserves a bit of unravelling. In the first part of 2011, David Kirk raised criticisms about Invest NI’s “strategy and intervention in Northern Ireland’s investment ecosystem” and followed them up with a written report. In response, Invest NI arranged an ‘Access To Capital Stakeholders Forum’ with investors and industry reps to be held in mid-October 2011, though they were reluctant to invite any NI angel investors with technology …

Northern Ireland military exports and human rights violations in Syria

Patrick Corrigan on December 6, 2011, 6:21 pm | Readers 113

The United Nations report a death toll “much more than 4,000” in Syria, mostly anti-government protestors killed by the country’s security forces. On 23 November, a Commission of Inquiry established by the UN Human Rights Council said it was “gravely concerned that crimes against humanity have been committed” in Syria. I can now report that Northern Ireland plc, acting perfectly legally, has done its bit to help prop up the repressive regime. Anti-President Assad activists have posted this video of Northern Ireland manufactured armoured vehicles, …

“I wouldn’t suggest that the executive’s programme for government is quite so meaningless…”

Pete Baker on October 5, 2011, 2:01 pm | Readers 11

The once and future Northern Ireland deputy First Minister, and Sinn Féin’s candidate in the Irish Presidential race, Martin McGuinness, MP, MLA, is keen to promote his “strong track record in seeking Foreign Direct Investment, leading important Trade Missions and attracting investment and jobs”. But, as Mark Devenport highlights from the leaked draft programme for government, [as with so many things… – Ed] that’s only half the story. However, glancing at the draft obtained this week by my colleague Martina Purdy, you …