Minister for Finance Jack Chambers has said that the next Government will need to remain highly focused on maintaining and enhancing the Ireland-US relationship into the future.
Mr Chambers was addressing the annual Thanksgiving Lunch in Dublin, hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland.
He told attendees that Ireland looks forward to working with the new Trump administration in a constructive manner.
“I know there has already been initial contacts including a valuable call between the Taoiseach and President-elect Trump,” Mr Chambers said.
“As well as stressing the clear value of the principles of free trade, we also look forward to engaging with the new administration on international tax reform, where 2025 offers clear opportunities for reform, which we hope can avoid fragmentation and bring much needed stability to the international tax landscape.”
“My view always is that a global approach is preferable to unilateral measures and we remain committed to multilateral solutions being the best way to achieve that,” Mr Chambers said.
He highlighted the Covid pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and other geopolitical tensions and conflicts which he said have resulted in a less globally integrated and trade-friendly environment.
“Such challenging global conditions present risks to open economies like Ireland that have benefited significantly from closer ties to our trading partners across the globe,” Mr Chambers said.
The survey of Chamber members showed that 32% cited it as their top worry, up from 19% in the previous survey back in July.
Housing also continues to be a big issue, with 30% of members saying it is their biggest challenge to growth and expansion here.