Emma Murray, the new chair of Chartered Accountants Ulster Society, believes that the many challenges we face can be overcome if we can engineer a period of stability where people can seize the opportunities in front of them and flourish.
Northern Ireland Has Many Hurdles To Overcome
In an article in the Irish News Emma points out to the hurdles that need to be overcome, including the fallout from the Covid pandemic, the present fierce cost of living crisis, the issues that Brexit has introduced, the workings of the NI Protocol and lastly the fact that the Northern Ireland Executive is not sitting in Stormont at present to help deal with all these issues. But she remains positive that if we build a strong local economy the future can be a bright one.
She said that: “In the year ahead, we’ll be working hard to support our members working across every sector of business here and we’ll be supporting those who have a positive vision for Northern Ireland,
“We need to ensure that we have a stable society which allows people to create opportunities, build confidence and encourage talent.
“We know that there are a number of key challenges for Northern Ireland, including the impact of the pandemic on business and society, the cost-of-living crisis, the impact of Brexit and the workings of the NI Protocol, and of course the breakdown of the Northern Ireland Executive when it is needed more now than ever. These are all challenges, but none of them are impossible.
“We continue to live in unpredictable times. We are moving into post-pandemic recovery, and over the last couple of years how we work and engage with each other has changed.
“As a professional body, our focus will be on helping business to move forward and to bring through talent so that they can encourage jobs and foster growth for everyone in our community.”
Adopting A New Way Of Working During The Health Crisis
And talking about the way the Chartered Accountants Ulster Society has adapted due to the pandemic she said:
“The health crisis changed everything. We had to adopt a new way of working and it changed how members interacted with us.
“The pandemic vastly increased our engagement with members as they had more opportunity to link in virtually to our events. We will continue to provide a busy programme of both virtual and in-person events and provide a strong voice for members across Northern Ireland.”
Times are tough but there are definitely glimmers of hope on the horizon, even though at times they seem very hard to find.
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