12th May 2014, 7pm
By Bryan T. Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
Cork Chamber held its 195th Annual General Meeting today Monday May 12th in the Imperial Hotel. The event marked the re-election of Chamber President, Ms. Gillian Keating, for the second of her two year term as well as the announcement of Barrie O’Connell, KPMG as the Chamber Vice President. The AGM also saw the election of four new board members – Mr. Ken Murphy, Careerwise, Mr. Bill O’Connell, EMC, Mr. Albert Diggin, Bank of Ireland and Mr. Paul O’Connell, Quintas.
Addressing the meeting Ms. Keating said, “At the commencement of my term as President of Cork Chamber I spoke of how this region, more than any other, had realised the potential of the collaborative approach and looking forward, the strength of the collaborative approach can be seen in the recent announcement of the establishment of Cork INC (Innovative, Networked, Connected) to drive the development of leisure and business tourism and the strategic economic marketing of Cork.”
“Cork Chamber has immediate priorities at this time including influencing and supporting the newly established Cork Airport Development Council which has a key role in ensuring first class connectivity for the region. Developing adequate flood defences following the devastating winter floods and ensuring Minister Hayes follows through on his commitment to make Cork his number one priority Flood Relief Scheme for the country and invest €50,000,000 to assist the Flood Defence Scheme. Cork Chamber is working to ensure that this promise is delivered upon in a timely manner. Cork Chamber also renews its commitment for 2014 to support the SME sector and will continue in its efforts to ensure access to finance, skills and resources to fully support this sector.”
“2014 presents many opportunities for Cork and to exploit these opportunities our members need to think smart, be innovative and adapt and Cork Chamber will as ever lead the way. I look forward to continuing to work with Cork Chamber members, board and staff to ensure there is a continued concentration of economic power within this city so that the Cork region cannot be ignored as a driver of significant economic activity for this country.”
Cork Chamber is the leading business organisation in Cork supporting and representing the interests of close to 1,100 businesses employing 100,000 people in the region. Cork Chamber has a mandate to develop and promote policy recommendations that create an enabling business environment and support the region’s economic development.