Society 379

SOCIETY
In the late 1960s, Ireland had around 300.000 farmers in a
workforce of just over a million people. Since then, we have
transformed our society.
every year. Ireland has much to offer
to the Austrian tourist as it provides
many things Austrians appreciate:
from beautiful scenery, green spaces,
hiking-paths and fine-dining to very
niche and solid offerings in the areas
of golf and fishing. The Wild Atlantic
Way, which is a beautiful road stretching
along the west coast from Cork
to Donegal is a must see for all visitors.
In the cultural area, we already have
regular visits by Irish musicians who
perform, train or work here. As Austria,
but particularly Vienna, is the classical
music capital of the world, I hope to
see even more Irish acts coming here.
Furthermore, we encourage Irish and
Austrian students to take advantage
of the Erasmus program. Therefore, I
would also like to see this relationship
deepen between our two countries.
Austrian literature students have a
great interest in studying in Ireland as
we have a very long literary tradition,
which we are actively encouraging.
Interestingly, we have the most Nobel
Prize winners for literature per capita
in the world and many famous authors
like Jonathan Swift, Oscar Wilde and
James Joyce were Irish.
Ireland is known to be a high-techhotspot
with many international
companies such as Google, Apple and
Facebook etc. having operations there.
What are the benefits of hosting
these multinationals in Ireland?
In the late 1960s, Ireland had around
300.000 farmers in a workforce of just
over one million people. Since then,
we have transformed our society. Our
membership of the European Union,
consistent investment in education
and creating an open global economy
has ensured that we are now a leading
player in many key industries.
Perhaps the key to our success has
been that we created a businessfriendly
environment, where we attracted
companies through very clear
regulatory rules, our world class education
system and a strong political
commitment across all governments
to encourage investment. In addition,
our tax regime is clear and transparent.
Ireland is now home to 20 of the
25 top financial services companies in
the world, 17 of the top twenty global
banks, eight of the top ten aircraft
leasing companies, eleven of the top
15 insurance companies, all of the top
ten “born on the internet” companies
and also all of the top ten pharmaceutical
firms. We realise, that we cannot
afford to stand still and are now investing
heavily in the digital economy
and ensuring that all sectors of society
and all regions of the country have full
digital access.
Do you feel like the shift towards
successful digitalization has been
accelerated during the pandemic?
I now spend around 70% of my working
life in front of a screen. I am also
accredited as Ambassador to the UN
and practically all UN-meetings are
taking place online since the pandemic
started. The question is whether
we will be able to maintain some of
the positive aspects in terms of hybrid
working, environment etc. even beyond
the pandemic. Generally, Europe
really needs to continue to invest in
innovation, flexibility and new technologies,
be it health technologies, automated
driving or artificial intelligence.
But of course digitalization also brings
challenges: There will be dislocations
in the job market, even though I don’t
think there will be less work all in all. A
real challenge in this regard definitely
is cybercrime. The developments
there are threatening our society and
that is why at the UNODC, we are
trying to agree on a new convention
on cybercrime.
Before coming to Vienna last year,
you have been posted as Ambassador
of Ireland to China and Mongolia.
What was your experience like there?
I think that China is an amazing
country, especially regarding economic
development. In the 1980s, it was
a very underdeveloped country while
it is now the world’s second largest
economy. With this transformation,
they have taken a billion people out of
absolute poverty. On top of that, they
have invested massively in their physical
and social infrastructure. China
now has world-class railway systems
and airports and is moving towards
a cashless society. In addition, there
are nine million students coming out
of university every year. Nevertheless,
like every country, they obviously have
their challenges and we would like
to see China integrate more into the
world in terms of economic integration
but also in terms of joining other
countries tackling human rights
issues.
Which impact does Brexit have on
Ireland and how would you describe
the significance of the EU for your
country?
Ireland has been a major beneficiary of
the process of European Integration.
Our EU membership has helped Ireland
and its people transform our society.
We were disappointed therefore,
when the British people voted to leave
the EU. We have worked with the other
EU Member States to minimise the
impact of Brexit and are hopeful that
the agreements reached between the
UK and the EU can ensure that Britain
and Europe can enjoy a strong bilateral
relationship. We are committed to
ensuring that the Peace Process, the
common travel area between the UK
and Ireland and Ireland’s own status
and achievements within the European
Union are protected.
IRELAND
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