Latest news with #Ibec
RTÉ News
6 hours ago
- Health
- RTÉ News
AI and cybersecurity a priority in health sector
A survey of companies in the medtech, pharma and digital health sectors has found that AI and cybersecurity are among the top priorities of businesses. The study was conducted by Amárach Research on behalf of business group Ibec. It found that 65% of respondents identified AI as their greatest area of focus, while 82% of respondents indicated that they planned to invest in the digitalisation of healthcare. "Most respondents identified the digitalisation of healthcare as very important in our research, this spans areas such as adding connectivity to devices, digital therapeutics and beyond," said Kieran Daly, Ibec Digital Health Working Group Chair, and General Manager HealthBeacon. "That's why it's unsurprising that cybersecurity was in the top three focus areas identified by 61% of leaders," Mr Daly said. Ciara Finlay, Ibec, Senior Executive said that digital health is estimated to grow to €426 billion by 2027, and as many as 87% of leaders said that government strategy was very important or important. "That is why the National Life Science Strategy for Ireland announced by Government has huge potential to help Ireland take a significant share of this growing market," Ms Finlay said. "However, if we do not have sufficient cross-industry input, alongside key opinion leaders, then we will lose out to competitors like France and the UK which have already made digital health a priority," she added. Toma Pervan, Executive, Irish Medtech said more than half of those surveyed identified the digital health business model as a priority. "Additionally, more than half (57%) noted that strategy development was a key leadership skills as we build for the future, and the majority (82%) identified strategy deployment as a key skill," Mr Pervan said. More than 200 companies and organisations were contacted between June 2024 and January 2025 by Ibec Digital Health, with 23 interviews completed by Amárach as part of the research.
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Parents face fee rise after Dublin childcare provider pulls out of ‘deeply flawed' core funding model
Parents whose children attend a nursery in Shankill, Dublin , face a steep monthly price increase as the centre plans to withdraw from a Government funding scheme, citing rising costs. In a letter sent to parents on Tuesday evening, Once Upon A Time, which operates several nursery and montessori schools across Dublin, said it has made the 'difficult decision to withdraw our Shankill Centre from the Core Funding model'. The company said the change will take effect from September 1st, resulting in fees increasing to €1,390 per month. 'This decision has not been taken lightly ... Please understand that this fee increase does not benefit us financially, it is solely to ensure we can continue to offer high-quality, dependable care to your children,' the email says. READ MORE The core funding grant was introduced by the Government in 2022 to assist early-learning and childcare providers with operating costs. In return for signing up to core funding, operators had to commit to a fee freeze . Many claimed they had already halted any increases due to the pandemic and other factors. A number of centres have already withdrawn from the scheme, blaming rising costs, and more are expected to follow suit. In the email sent to parents on Tuesday, Once Upon a Time said: 'We have delayed action for the past two years in the hope that much-needed reforms would be made to the core funding model ... However, despite strong advocacy from Early Childhood Ireland, Ibec, Federation of Early Childcare Providers and Once Upon a Time, no meaningful changes have been introduced to make this model financially sustainable for private full-day care services like ours. 'We have now exhausted all efforts in our attempts to encourage the Department of Childcare [sic] to change course in relation to [core funding].' The email says the core funding model is 'deeply flawed' and 'traps services in outdated, frozen fee structures while the cost of delivering quality childcare has continued to rise'. Once Upon a Time told parents it 'fully' supports pay increases for its staff but cannot afford to pay these and other expenses without increasing fees. Once Upon a Time runs several centres across Dublin but the email states that its Shankill branch is the only one due to be withdrawn from the scheme at present. However, the email notes: 'We are implementing a phased withdrawal from the model, beginning with our centres where fees are furthest below market rate.' Elaine Dunne, chairwoman of the Federation of Early Childhood Providers, said she is aware of many centres across the country that will probably withdraw from the scheme in the coming weeks. Ms Dunne said centres are doing this 'because they have to, they have no choice – the core funding has failed them'. She said childcare centres in Dublin typically have the highest costs but services will be affected all over the country. 'It's not just Dublin that this is going to hit. We're seeing a lot of people saying that they're going to be left with no choice [but to withdraw] ... If you can't pay your bills, if you can't support your staff wage increase, if you can't do any of that, you're left with no choice at this point but to pull out of core funding.' Ms Dunne said stakeholders in the sector are engaging with Minister for Children Norma Foley and officials in her department about the issue, but changes must urgently be made to the model. 'Somebody in Government needs to listen. There needs to be real consultation,' said Ms Dunne. The Irish Times has contacted Once Upon a Time and the Department of Children for comment. Under recent maximum childcare fee caps announced by the department, from September onwards the highest possible fees will be no more than €295 per 40 to 50-hour week placement. A parent being charged the maximum permissible fee of €295 per week is entitled to receive the universal National Childcare Scheme subsidy of €96.30, meaning their payment would be no more than €198.70 per week, the department said last month. Speaking at the time, Ms Foley said: 'The extension of maximum fee caps to all services participating in core funding will reduce costs for families facing the highest fees in the country. 'It is another step along the way to achieving the commitment in the programme for government to a maximum payment by parents of €200 per child per month for early learning and childcare during the lifetime of this government." State funding for early learning and childcare providers through core funding is being increased by €60 million for the 2025/2026 period, bringing it to more than €390 million.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump tariffs cause Ireland's economy to shrink for first time in two years
Ireland's economy has shrunk for the first time in almost two years after Donald Trump's tariff blitz sparked a sharp drop in corporate activity. New trade figures show that Irish gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 1pc in the three months to June 30. This was a marked slowdown from the previous quarter between January and March, when growth hit 7.4pc as companies accelerated exports to get ahead of the US president's 'liberation day' tariffs announcement on April 2. After pausing his initial wave of tariffs, Mr Trump on Monday agreed a deal with Brussels that will slap a 15pc tax on EU exports to the US, threatening to deepen Ireland's economic slowdown further. Simon Harris, Ireland's deputy prime minister, acknowledged that the 15pc tariff was 'regrettable', saying the government would have to assess its 'implications'. Almost one third of Irish exports are shipped to the US, accounting for 12pc of GDP. Pharmaceuticals, one of the most powerful engines of the Irish economy, account for more than 60pc of this, last year totalling €44bn (£39bn). The deal's impact on the sector remains unclear. Mr Harris said the Irish government's understanding was that European drug makers would face a tariff of no more than 15pc, even if Mr Trump follows through on his threat of introducing higher worldwide pharma tariffs. 'The EU will continue to work with the US to underline the closely integrated nature of the EU and US pharmaceutical sector,' he said. Mr Harris said the EU had also secured a 'zero for zero' tariff rate for the aviation industry and some agricultural products and chemicals. But Irish business groups branded the US-EU trade deal a 'capitulation'. 'It's quite tragic that we are in this situation,' Danny McCoy, the chief executive of the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (Ibec), told Irish television. 'If Europe had equal strength, it could have confronted the United States. 'US businesses are now favoured coming into Europe without tariffs, and our European businesses are facing 15pc.' Micheál Martin, the Taoiseach, sought to defend the deal, saying it had ensured that businesses had clarity and certainty, and would protect Irish jobs. But former taoiseach and Brexit critic Leo Varadkar attacked the agreement, and questioned whether Mr Trump would stick with it. 'This will mean fewer EU exports to the US and higher prices for Americans,' he said on social media. 'The only thing it's better than is no deal at all and that's only if it sticks.' Mr McCoy agreed with Mr Martin that businesses at least now knew where they stood. 'The good news, if there is good news on this, is that uncertainty may be dissipating and that's going to be important for people in business to make decisions,' he said. But 'in time, this will lead to a lot of changes in terms of businesses having to look at different markets than the United States or suffer significant losses trading with the United States'. Ibec urged the Irish government to support businesses that have to adjust to the new conditions. Mr Martin said the government, which has been building up a pool of public funds to support industries through crises, would take time to weigh up the tariffs' impact. 'We will now study the detail of what has been agreed, including its implications for businesses exporting from Ireland to the US, and for different sectors operating here,' he said. 'The agreement is a framework and there will be more detail to be fleshed out in the weeks and months ahead.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Irish Examiner
4 days ago
- Business
- Irish Examiner
We may need 'product-by-product negotiations' after US-EU trade agreement, says Taoiseach
There is still 'much to be negotiated' in the aftermath of the tariff agreement between the US and the EU, Taoiseach Micheál Martin has warned. He stated that this could mean 'product-by-product negotiations'. Mr Martin also suggested that while no one is 'welcoming tariffs with open arms', the deal is better than an all-out trade war. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump confirmed that a 15% tariff will apply on EU goods entering the US. The EU further agreed to buy $750bn worth of US energy and to invest $600bn in the US economy. Ms von der Leyen stated that pharmaceuticals are included in the 15% tariff but admitted that any future decision would be 'on a different sheet of paper'. The Taoiseach said the agreement 'avoids a trade conflict which would be very, very damaging', arguing that it brings 'stability and predictability'. However, he also contended that this is not the end of the road. 'There is much to be negotiated in the aftermath of this framework agreement, in some sectors, product by product negotiations,' he said. 'We will continue to try and add to the agreement for the benefit of European workers, consumers, and patients.' The agreement has come in for sharp criticism in some quarters. In France, prime minister Francois Bayrou said it was a 'sombre day' and stated that the EU had 'resigned itself to submission'. At home, Ibec CEO Danny McCoy accused the EU of 'capitulation'. When these statements were put to the Taoiseach, he stated that Ibec and other EU member states would not want a 'trade war'. However, he added that 'nobody is welcoming tariffs with open arms'. 'We've been consistent in saying that we don't agree with tariffs, we'd prefer if there weren't tariffs, but we have to deal with realities,' he said. 'I understand people criticising, but given the balance and the options here… I would appreciate the work of the commission in this regard and the avoidance of a trade war is preferable.' Mr McCoy said that the deal was 'clearly' the EU submitting to the US and predicted there would be 'many twists and turns yet'. He said: The real prize here is certainty, but we don't know whether we've got certainty with Donald Trump. 'If we were certain it was 15%, we could end up coping quite well with this. We would redirect where our trade was going from.' Elsewhere, former taoiseach Leo Varadkar stated the deal struck between the EU and the US was better than if there was 'no deal at all', adding, 'that's only if it sticks'. In a post on X, Mr Varadkar noted that a 'good trade deal is one that increases trade flows and reduces prices for consumers'. Mr Varadkar told the Irish Examiner that he believes Mr Trump will target pharmaceuticals further. However, he admitted that he is 'not overly concerned' about what it will mean for Irish finances. 'It'll take time to have an impact, and we are well insulated with such a big surplus,' he said. 'We need to work on contingencies, in particular, selling our products to the rest of the world with which we have stable trading relationships, such as the EU, UK, Japan, South Korea, Latin America.'
RTÉ News
4 days ago
- Business
- RTÉ News
Europe 'capitulated' on US tariff deal, says Ibec CEO
CEO of Ibec Danny McCoy has described the deal reached by the European Union and the United States on trade tariffs as a capitulation by Europe. The agreement will see EU exports taxed at 15% in a bid to resolve a transatlantic tariff stand-off that threatened to explode into a full-blown trade war. The deal was announced following a meeting between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump. Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Mr McCoy said: "The good news, if there is good news on this, is that uncertainty may be dissipating and that's going to be important for people in business to make decisions." However, he said the deal was "fairly punishing" for the EU and added "Europe has capitulated". "It's quite tragic that we are in this situation. If Europe had equal strength, it could have confronted the United States," he said. Mr McCoy said that while the EU is a "strong economic zone", its weakness is that "we cannot defend the European Union". Under the deal, the EU pledged to buy US military equipment and European companies are to invest $600 billion in the US over President Trump's second term. "US businesses are now favoured coming into Europe without tariffs and our European businesses are facing 15%. "In time, this will lead to a lot of changes in terms of businesses having to look at different markets than the United States or suffer significant losses trading with the United States," Mr McCoy said. He also raised concerns for Ireland that goods from the UK entering the US will have a smaller tariff rate of 10%. The US and UK agreed to a trade deal in early May, which included a baseline 10% tariff on most goods exported to the US, with certain exemptions. The agreement includes goods being exported from Northern Ireland. EU-US tariffs deal gives clarity, says minister Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke said that the deal brings clarity and avoids a trade war that could have resulted in 30% tariffs on EU goods. Speaking on the same programme, he said: "It gives certainty which is key, but there's three key areas I think we have to focus on. "We are about four days away, which would have been a 30% tariff for the US and that would have been very significant for all our companies right across the country. "Secondly, I think it avoids a direct trade war because we're very much aware that there was about €100 billion of countermeasures that were ready to be deployed, which would have a very significant effect on Ireland and as well on the north-south economy." Mr Burke added that "the devil is in the detail and we do need to see those key areas, those carve-outs that have been specifically called out by the President of the Commission yesterday". He said that the Irish Government "is very, very clear and has been that tariffs are bad" and said 15% is a "very significant tariff". In relation to pharmaceuticals, Mr Burke said that the understanding is that the 15% tariff "will be a ceiling" subsequent to the US investigation. "Pharmaceuticals are very complex, a lot of the product that is exported over to the US is not a complete product. Almost 70% of it is components of the final product that will come together. "And that's why we do need to ensure that we have a very keen rate to ensure we incentivise innovation in that sector because that's so important for the global economy. "We've about 100,000 employees in Ireland, 130 billion exports in the life science sector and the Government will be bringing forward a separate life science strategy later on this year, which will be key in continuing the investment and offering a very competitive proposition from Ireland's perspective," Mr Burke added.
