Secretary of State hails Northern Ireland’s economic transformation in address to Top 100 companies

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn MP, pictured with Belfast City Hall in the background.

Northern Ireland’s Secretary of State has praised the region’s “tremendous economic growth” in the decades since the Good Friday Agreement, telling the Ulster Business Top 100 companies that political stability has been “good for business as well as people”.

Writing in Ulster Business, the Secretary of State reflected on almost 30 years of economic transformation, pointing to the vibrancy of key industries such as aerospace, life sciences, manufacturing, and film and television.

“The Top 100 is a celebration of the tremendous economic growth we have seen in Northern Ireland since the Good Friday Agreement almost three decades ago,” he said.

“The transformation of Northern Ireland since then shows how political stability is not only good for its people but good for business too.”

Marking a year in office, the Secretary of State said he had been “privileged” to meet entrepreneurs and business leaders “across the length and breadth of Northern Ireland” and had been impressed by how local companies were “successfully attracting inward investment, innovating and experiencing significant economic growth”.

He highlighted that Northern Ireland’s economy grew faster than the UK as a whole last year, calling it “a testament to what can be achieved with political stability, co-operation and a strong economy”.

Record funding and major investments

The Secretary of State pointed to the UK Government’s record £19.3 billion settlement for the next three years – the largest in the history of devolution – as a key enabler of long-term strategic investment.

He also referenced the Prime Minister’s £1.6 billion deal with Thales in Belfast, which will see the company manufacture more than 5,000 lightweight multirole missiles for Ukraine’s defence, creating 200 new jobs and safeguarding 700 existing roles.

Additional investments include:

• £2 million for Queen’s University Belfast’s Cyber AI Hub

• Continued support for local aerospace industries, securing jobs for over 5,000 people

• £310 million over four years for City and Growth Deals in Belfast, Derry & Strabane, Causeway Coast & Glens, and the Mid South West

Trade, innovation, and the Windsor Framework

The Secretary of State also highlighted new UK Industrial and Trade Strategies aimed at strengthening ties between business and government, boosting exports, and attracting foreign investment.

He said recent trade agreements with the US and India, alongside the Windsor Framework and forthcoming SPS Agreement with the EU, would “facilitate the smooth flow of agri-food and plants from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, protecting the UK’s internal market, reducing costs for businesses and improving consumer choice”.

Looking to the future, he expressed confidence that Northern Ireland’s economy “will continue to flourish as a thriving and growing part of the UK for many years to come”.