US firm's 'unexpected' withdrawal of 300 jobs came after discussion on 'geopolitical issues' with SF minister, record shows
A US company told Stormont’s economy minister it would not be proceeding with a potential investment of 300 jobs for Northern Ireland after a discussion on “current geopolitical issues”, records of the meeting show.
The scant, four line record of a “short” encounter between Caoimhe Archibald and representatives of Cantor Fitzgerald were released following claims the Sinn Fein’s minister’s political views may have scuppered the investment.
DUP MLA Jonathan Buckley brought allegations to an Assembly committee this week that the deal may have fallen through because of Sinn Fein’s positions on issues such as Gaza.
Ms Archibald said the company’s decision was “absolutely a matter for them” – and that parties should express political positions “as they feel”. Her top official Ian Snowden said he didn’t have the detail on why the investment fell through.
However, he told MLAs that a senior leader of the company was a member of President Trump’s cabinet, and overseas investments may not have aligned with US government policy at that point.
Now, the Department for Economy has released “the full notes from the meeting” – which consist of four bullet points. They show that “geopolitical issues” were discussed before the company unexpectedly withdrew an offer.
The notes state:
- Short meeting with the senior Cantor Executives.
- [redacted] gave an overview of the business history and mentioned Howard Lutnick as the previous Cantor CEO and now the US Secretary of Commerce.
- Discussion on current geopolitical issues.
- [redacted] thanked the Minister for the meeting and commented that Cantor will need further time to consider their potential investment in NI.
On Wednesday, Mr Snowdon told MLAs that Cantor Fitzgerald had been planning to create up to 300 jobs in Northern Ireland but “unexpectedly” told Ms Archibald it had shelved the idea during the meeting in the United States last March.
Asked by the News Letter if the views of the minister or her party were a factor in their decision to stop the investment – and whether it could have gone ahead despite US trade policy if it were not for Sinn Fein's views on issues such as Gaza – a spokesperson for Cantor Fitzgerald declined to comment.