Post by earl on May 9, 2008 13:06:19 GMT
Europa Hotel, Symbol of Belfast Conflict, Lures U.S. Executives
May 7 (Bloomberg) -- When William Hastings bought Belfast's Europa Hotel, the target of Irish Republican Army bombers stood as a symbol of the conflict which ravaged Northern Ireland's economy and killed about 3,500 people since 1969.
The 240-room Europa is now preparing to host U.S. company executives who will be attending a three-day investment conference at Belfast venues as Northern Ireland's year-old government seeks to convert peace into economic success.
``The fallback was to convert it to shops and apartments,'' said Hastings, 79, whose hotel has hosted former U.S. President Bill Clinton and singer Lionel Richie. ``But I had a strong feeling that things were moving in the right direction.''
Hastings bought the hotel in 1994, during a series of attempts by the British and Irish governments to end a conflict that spanned three decades. During that time, the Europa was bombed about 30 times by the IRA. The peace process culminated last year, with the restoration of the U.K. province's power- sharing government and the beginnings of an economic boom.
``Very often people closed their minds to Northern Ireland because of the legacy,'' Trade Minister Nigel Dodds said at the Stormont parliament buildings outside Belfast on April 8. ``We're open for business.''
First Minister Ian Paisley and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness will welcome executives from companies including Citigroup Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to a forum that runs today through May 9 and is aimed at creating the jobs Northern Ireland needs to power its economy.
United Ireland
Nortel Networks Corp. Chief Executive Officer Mike Zafirovski and Bank of Ireland Plc CEO Brian Goggin will address delegates on the benefits of investing in the province. Government ministers will promote the region as a place where labor is cheaper than in London and other European capitals.
Northern Ireland is the U.K.'s third-poorest region, with gross domestic product per capita 20 percent below the U.K. average. The province is trying to reduce its reliance on the government, which accounts for one third of payrolls, compared with a U.K. average of 20 percent.
The power-sharing government, based at Stormont, was restored in May 2007 after Paisley formed an executive office with Sinn Fein, the political ally of the paramilitary IRA. Unionists including Paisley, who steps down next month, want Northern Ireland to stay with the U.K., while nationalists have fought for a united Ireland.
``It's very cost-competitive here,'' Dodds said. ``There's money to be made. Over the years, guys who would have taken their business forward were reluctant to do so.''
`Start Somewhere'
Northern Ireland's 1 million people are still divided. Belfast is split by the so-called peace line, a 25-foot high brick, steel and wire structure separating the city's hard-line nationalist and unionist communities.
Houses close to the peace line are protected by additional wire metal structures and police still close some gates in the wall at night, to prevent sectarian attacks.
Northern Ireland may struggle to win more investment because its 28 percent corporation tax rate is more than double the Republic of Ireland's 12.5 percent tariff.
``Without the obvious attraction of the lower corporate tax, the proposition is certainly less attractive,'' said Michael Smyth, a lecturer in the School of Economics and Politics at the University of Ulster, said. ``But you have to start somewhere,'' he said, referring to the conference.
Meantime, in east Belfast, close to where the conference will be held, the Harland & Wolff shipyard, birthplace of the Titanic liner, is being reborn as part of a $2 billion housing, retail and financial development.
Hastings recalled how in the 1970s, employees nicknamed his Slieve Donard hotel outside Belfast after the doomed ocean liner, ``because it was leaking money and we thought it would sink the whole business.
``Thankfully we've turned the corner on that one,'' he said. ``The Titanic is floating.''
May 7 (Bloomberg) -- When William Hastings bought Belfast's Europa Hotel, the target of Irish Republican Army bombers stood as a symbol of the conflict which ravaged Northern Ireland's economy and killed about 3,500 people since 1969.
The 240-room Europa is now preparing to host U.S. company executives who will be attending a three-day investment conference at Belfast venues as Northern Ireland's year-old government seeks to convert peace into economic success.
``The fallback was to convert it to shops and apartments,'' said Hastings, 79, whose hotel has hosted former U.S. President Bill Clinton and singer Lionel Richie. ``But I had a strong feeling that things were moving in the right direction.''
Hastings bought the hotel in 1994, during a series of attempts by the British and Irish governments to end a conflict that spanned three decades. During that time, the Europa was bombed about 30 times by the IRA. The peace process culminated last year, with the restoration of the U.K. province's power- sharing government and the beginnings of an economic boom.
``Very often people closed their minds to Northern Ireland because of the legacy,'' Trade Minister Nigel Dodds said at the Stormont parliament buildings outside Belfast on April 8. ``We're open for business.''
First Minister Ian Paisley and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness will welcome executives from companies including Citigroup Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to a forum that runs today through May 9 and is aimed at creating the jobs Northern Ireland needs to power its economy.
United Ireland
Nortel Networks Corp. Chief Executive Officer Mike Zafirovski and Bank of Ireland Plc CEO Brian Goggin will address delegates on the benefits of investing in the province. Government ministers will promote the region as a place where labor is cheaper than in London and other European capitals.
Northern Ireland is the U.K.'s third-poorest region, with gross domestic product per capita 20 percent below the U.K. average. The province is trying to reduce its reliance on the government, which accounts for one third of payrolls, compared with a U.K. average of 20 percent.
The power-sharing government, based at Stormont, was restored in May 2007 after Paisley formed an executive office with Sinn Fein, the political ally of the paramilitary IRA. Unionists including Paisley, who steps down next month, want Northern Ireland to stay with the U.K., while nationalists have fought for a united Ireland.
``It's very cost-competitive here,'' Dodds said. ``There's money to be made. Over the years, guys who would have taken their business forward were reluctant to do so.''
`Start Somewhere'
Northern Ireland's 1 million people are still divided. Belfast is split by the so-called peace line, a 25-foot high brick, steel and wire structure separating the city's hard-line nationalist and unionist communities.
Houses close to the peace line are protected by additional wire metal structures and police still close some gates in the wall at night, to prevent sectarian attacks.
Northern Ireland may struggle to win more investment because its 28 percent corporation tax rate is more than double the Republic of Ireland's 12.5 percent tariff.
``Without the obvious attraction of the lower corporate tax, the proposition is certainly less attractive,'' said Michael Smyth, a lecturer in the School of Economics and Politics at the University of Ulster, said. ``But you have to start somewhere,'' he said, referring to the conference.
Meantime, in east Belfast, close to where the conference will be held, the Harland & Wolff shipyard, birthplace of the Titanic liner, is being reborn as part of a $2 billion housing, retail and financial development.
Hastings recalled how in the 1970s, employees nicknamed his Slieve Donard hotel outside Belfast after the doomed ocean liner, ``because it was leaking money and we thought it would sink the whole business.
``Thankfully we've turned the corner on that one,'' he said. ``The Titanic is floating.''
