TAOISEACH MICHEÁL MARTIN has claimed that world leaders can get labelled as right-wing or far-right “very quickly”, and warned that people should not “buy into the label” or the stereotyping of people.

Martin made the remarks while during a ‘fireside chat’ hosted by US Chamber of Commerce president Suzanne Clark in Washington DC, where he once again boasted about the strong economic ties between the US and Ireland.

Characterizing the relationship as a “shared value system and genuine belief in the importance of the entrepreneurial spirit”, Martin said the Irish-US trade relationship is “increasingly a two-way street”.

“We have up to 900 U.S. companies in Ireland. U.S. companies contribute 200,000 jobs, and we’ve got about 770 Irish companies in the States creating over 150,000 jobs,” Martin told the gathering of business leaders.

Many of the Taoiseach’s remarks echoed the comments he made during his meeting with Trump in the Oval Office yesterday, where he also highlighted that foreign investment is “a two-way street” between the US and Ireland.

Martin pictured speaking to US Chamber of Commerce CEO Suzanne Clark

Asked how the US business community can adapt to the changing politics in the EU, Martin told the Chamber of Commerce that “one has to be careful of overreacting”.

“People get labeled very quickly – leaders get labeled as being far right or too right. I always take people as I meet them and engage with them,” Martin said.

Singling out Belgium, where right-leaning parties dominated in elections last June, Martin claimed that a number of EU nations are “looking at shift in terms of greater disposition towards less regulation and more innovation”.

He said that a lot of people on the right “got alienated by being labeled too quickly”, adding that there wasn’t “space created to allow people to articulate their position or their views on something” without the fear of getting shut down. 

“Social media has created that idea of the polarizing sound, so you’re either at one camp or you’re in another.

“That’s the bit that’s missing at the moment in public discourse – the continuum of nuance, the complexity, things are not simple. There’s always much more gray in life, in my view, and that’s missing the public debate at the moment,” Martin said.

‘Penny has dropped’

Martin was vocally critical of EU overregulation during the discussion, where he said that the “winds of change” were blowing towards innovation and “reduction of regulation”.

“There’s a move within the European Union now to simplify regulation. I think the penny has dropped. The message has got home.”

Martin said that Ireland was committed to working with the D9+ group of countries (Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia and the Czech Republic) to advocate for the simplification of regulations in the EU.

“It’s not been satisfactory. We in Ireland understand that, because a lot of the companies are located in Ireland.”

He said that there was “growing recognition” across Europe for the need for a reduction in regulations, but added: “That has to be matched by action and real concrete development.”

Ireland will ‘play a role’ in EU defence

The Taoiseach also told the commerce conference that it is undeniable that European defence spending will increase.

He said it is “very clear” that Ireland will “have to play its role” in European security, while taking its traditional military neutrality into account.

“I can predict that the next multi-financial framework, which is the European Union budget, will involve a significant increase in European Union spending on defence capability, which will be focused on increasing opportunities and capacities from member states to increase their expenditure.”

Martin explained that Ireland will become a “net contributor” to defence capability across Europe through a collective debt instrument.

He added: “But Ireland in itself will have to increase, and we are doubling our defence – coming from a very low base – defence expenditure.

“But again, we have to do it in a targeted way. Cyber security, sub-sea cables, maritime security – those are probably the most immediate vulnerabilities.”

Additional reporting by PA and Jane Matthews in Washington DC