Address by Mr. Micheál Martin, T.D. Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment on the Occasion of the 25 year anniversary luncheon of Eli Lilly

on Friday 5^th May, 2006

 

 

I would like to begin by thanking you for inviting me here today. I am delighted to have the opportunity to address this, the twenty fifth anniversary luncheon of Eli Lilly in Ireland. I would like to congratulate all concerned in organising this event.

Eli Lilly is a leading innovation-driven company committed to developing a portfolio of best-in-class pharmaceutical products to help people live longer, healthier and more active lives. Today gives me the opportunity to meet Scott Canute, President of Manufacturing Operations and Charles Fisher, General Manager of the Kinsale facility, as well as the management and workforce, and to congratulate them all on their dedication and commitment in making Eli Lilly such a wonderful success story over the company’s twenty five years in Ireland. This is an achievement worthy of great celebration.

Irish industry is changing. We are now engaged in direct competition in a global market, so the quality of our products and services must far exceed what we previously considered acceptable. We have to move up the value chain to maintain employment.

 

The key to success in today's competitive manufacturing environment is to maximise our asset potential, both workforce and capital, to improve performance. As with any activity, there is always room for improvement. In business, however, this is critical and those who learn to master the core skills will enjoy superior performance and have a distinct advantage over their competitors.

The competitiveness of Irish manufacturing in the future will be based, not only on the cost of labour but also on the ability of people to operate these high technology, capital-intensive facilities at the highest levels of efficiency and productivity.

Eli Lilly has a long and distinguished history of providing excellent employment. The contribution that this site has made to the local economy of Kinsale and its surrounding area has been substantial right from the beginning. This Eli Lilly operation is a fine example of a high-quality, state-of-the-art manufacturing investment and demonstrates that Ireland remains a leading location worldwide for manufacturing investments that are critical to the future development of major global companies.

The pharma sector employs more than 17,000 highly skilled people directly in Ireland and provides very high quality employment; approximately 50% of those employed directly in the sector are third level graduates. The high value-added and knowledge intensive nature of the industry is also reflected in the average salary in the sector, which is significantly higher than the average industrial wage. Exports were valued at €30 billion in 2004, putting Ireland into the top ten exporters of pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals in the world. The sector is clearly a major contributor to the success of the Irish economy.

It is indeed an exciting time to be in the pharmaceutical sector in Ireland as it continues to grow steadily. I wish to assure you all that this Government continues to be committed to the expansion of the sector and to maintaining the right environment for businesses seeking to establish new facilities and to expand on existing investments.

The pharma sector is one of the key sectors that we in Government have identified for growth in Ireland and we will seek to provide the best business environment to support that policy. In this regard, it was encouraging to read the Advocate General’s recent opinion on the legitimacy of our corporation tax regime, which I know is very important to the continuing development of the industry in Ireland.

If any sector encapsulates the Irish economy’s ambitions of moving from manufacturing to knowledge-led activities, then the research-based pharmaceutical industry is the most likely one. The pharmaceutical sector has been one of the few areas to meet the goals of the Lisbon Agenda, the economic strategy signed by all EU member countries in 2000, with the declared aim of building a ‘knowledge-led’ economy through spending 3% of GDP in R&D activities. As a research-driven industry, pharmaceutical companies typically re-invest 15-20% of their sales in R&D, making it a truly knowledge-led industry. I am also delighted to see the industry tying ever-closer links with Ireland’s educational institutions and I’m sure this union will be a mutually successful one for all concerned.

Biotechnology is now fulfilling its promise to become one of the key sectors in the creation of a high-tech research and industrial base in Ireland and is primed for significant growth. The Government is committed to a pro-business, pro-science environment to transform Irish industry to meet the demands of the 21^st century. The Government is making an unprecedented level of investment in science and technology to create a vibrant and well-supported biotech research community, giving a substantial resource for technology solutions which I am confident will form the basis for a stream of technology-based start-ups into the future.

We are now a very attractive location for investment in R&D activity. Ireland's has a ready supply of young, well educated science and chemistry graduates and provides substantial R&D funding by Government, notably through Science Foundation Ireland and IDA Ireland. I am pleased to say that the calibre of the Irish workforce continues to greatly impress overseas companies.

Ireland is now one of the world’s largest exporters of pharmaceuticals with annual exports of intermediates and finished pharmaceuticals worth over €30 billion in 2004. Six out of ten of the world’s top selling drugs are produced in Ireland. This is an extraordinary success story which we should all be very proud of and Eli Lilly has played a major part in this success.

I am delighted to be here today to celebrate this very significant event and to recognise the importance of Eli Lilly as a major global company which has placed its faith and confidence in Ireland for the long-term development of its world-wide manufacturing operations.

In conclusion, I want to thank you for inviting me and I wish all concerned in this venture every success in the future. This is without doubt, a company that can look forward to the next twenty five years with great confidence.

ENDS/ETE 1561