Breaking down barriers will help all entrepreneurs – Murphy

Economy Minister Conor Murphy has said that his Department will work to develop solutions that unlock the potential that exists within all our entrepreneurs.

Economy Minister Conor Murphy pictured with Dr Laura Bradley, Inclusive Entrepreneurship Researcher, University of Ulster Business School, and Prof Monder Ram OBE, Director of the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME).

The Minister was speaking at the ‘Time to Change’ event held in the Long Gallery, Stormont. The event’s purpose was to enable policymakers along with community and business representatives to share the progress to date on the ‘Time to Change’ report: A Blueprint for Advancing the UK’s Ethnic Minority Businesses’, discuss the key recommendations, and explore how people might become involved in addressing the specific barriers faced by ethnic minority entrepreneurs. 

The Minister said:  “I’m keen to refocus economic policy to better support domestic start-ups and SMEs that want to grow. That means improving support for all entrepreneurs, but particularly for people who face additional barriers.  Such barriers for ethnic minority people and migrants include discrimination, lack of access to capital and networks, a lack of confidence, and language barriers.

“It is important to remove these obstacles given the opportunities for business growth created by the Windsor Framework.  Dual market access gives us a unique basis for building our exports and it is important that all entrepreneurs are able to take advantage of this status.”

Notes to editors: 

1. The ‘Time to Change’ report: A Blueprint for Advancing the UK’s Ethnic Minority Businesses’ was commissioned by NatWest Group and prepared by the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME). It provides an analysis on the perceived and actual barriers experienced by ethnic minority business founders with 10 proposed recommendations.  
2. The event was co-hosted by Steve Pollard and Dr Laura Bradley, Ulster University Business School, and guest speakers included John Ferris, Regional Ecosystem Manager at Ulster Bank, Susan Nightingale, Director of Devolved Nations at British Business Bank, Michael McQuillan, Chief Executive of Enterprise NI, Dr Lorna Treanor, President at the Institute for Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Prof Monder Ram OBE, Director of the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME).
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