Dear Chamber Member,
This week we passed the mid-way point of January, and we continue to work through the challenges brought about by the pandemic and by the restrictions on our movements. And while we can't control the forces of nature that will gift us with the first signs of spring, it is important for us to remember the role that each of us plays in controlling the spread of the virus, and therefore allowing for the reopening of our economy and society.
The move to remote working for so many organisations is one of the single greatest changes to work practices since the industrial revolution. It is clear now, that remote working will remain part of how businesses operate in the longer term, and the launch of the Remote Working Strategy this week by An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar TD is a welcome move in supporting the business community make the appropriate adaptations. This could also have positive impact on the development of our city and towns right across the county of Cork, as well as more rural areas. However the acceleration and rapid delivery of the National Broadband Plan will be critical to the practicality and implementation of remote working policies into the future.
There have been important green shoots in other areas of infrastructure this week. The National Transport Authority (NTA) have announced the engineering teams who have been appointed to design core bus corridors, one of the key elements of the Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (CMATS). Cork can only deliver on its growth projections and evolve to a more resilient and sustainable economic model if comprehensive multimodal transport options are in place. The NTA needs a strong presence and overt delivery office in Cork, and the forthcoming NDP review must give utter confidence to all involved.
Cork Chamber has made a submission to the N/M20 Cork to Limerick Improvement Scheme, currently at options selection stage. We are committed to seeing a comprehensive upgrade to the N/M20 transport corridor progressed. The redevelopment of the regionally significant route corridor has been on the backburner for too long. Nationally and regionally, we cannot afford further complacency on this, and must enable our economic centres to thrive. We encourage the project team to take every available opportunity to complement and, or, implement interregional active travel, and CMATS/LSMATS objectives in the final design stages and to ensure that the design is leading, contemporary, safe and progressive in relation to multi modal mobility, combining road, bus, rail, and active travel.
We will continue to advocate for improvements in our infrastructure and the necessary legislative changes that will benefit our region, and I welcome your input and discussion on issues relevant to your business.
The busy Cork Chamber events calendar 2021 is up and running, our training team is now taking bookings for our Circular Economy for SMEs course and our international team are here to support you build international connections and to advise on changes to your export documentation requirements as a result of Brexit.
On any issue or with any views please contact me directly on 087-9471858 or by e-mail HERE.
Take care,
Conor Healy
CEO
