Thats all true, but being the extreme cynic that I am, I still struggle to see how NI can benefit massively and attract the mega-corps whilst being caught in the middle with regards to Brexit. The additional customs checks will create complex bureaucratic headaches for business, and theres already been analysis's conducted that demonstrate that many of the supposed benefits of our quasi-EU status may be mitigated by future Westminster legislation. Theres an additional fear that shell-corperations may be established to take advantage of our enviable position whilst the mainland continues to benefit with the majority of job creation and office space usage. To become a truly competitive and appealing business hub, there would also be an obligation to invest potentially billions improving our inadequate local infrastructure and making Belfast a more desirable place for urban professionals to live.
I imagine that post-downturn, Belfast's thriving businesses will instead predominantly continue to be from within the local hospitality sector, which in the last decade has grown to become a real tangiable asset. One other exception I can see is our established and growing tech scene, in which I also happen to be employed. The talent pool is already there. Communications infrastructure aside, tech firms should hopefully approach Belfast with more open minds and far fewer expectations and demands than other more traditional industries usually make.
Covid I guess is a totally separate issue. We've undeniably handled it pretty well here, but at the end of the day we're bound to the larger British economy, and being a small, economically insignificant part of the country I'm not sure theres an awful lot we can do to mitigate the impending damage that the nation is about to experience as a whole. If England is weak, then we are weak. I really do hope I am so wrong! Bring on the cranes. 🏗