Economy Ministers Commit To 'Work In Partnership' With The South

The Economy Minister has pledged to continue to "work in partnership" with the South of Ireland to ensure full advantage is taken of Northern Ireland's unique trading arrangements.

Speaking after chairing the Trade and Business Development Sectoral Meeting of the North South Ministerial Council in Armagh.

Minister Conor Murphy said: "The Windsor Framework protects the all-island economy. It is therefore important that we work together on a north-south basis to ensure that businesses across all sectors are able to take advantage of the new trading arrangements. "These trading arrangements will be a key catalyst in achieving my economic vision of a highly-productive, zero carbon, regionally balanced economy with good jobs."

At the meeting an update was provided on the work of InterTradeIreland, which continues to provide support for cross-border trade and cooperation through its many programmes and financial support initiatives.

The Minister added: "InterTradeIreland has made excellent progress on the delivery of its programmes that strengthen trade across both jurisdictions.

"I am therefore pleased that today we have been able to agree an uplift in InterTradeIreland's headcount which will enable them to meet increased demand across all programmes and supports."