Lyons praises Northern Ireland’s cyber security sector on US trade visit

Pictured (L-R) are Signe Pringle, Deputy Secretary of Commerce; Economy Minister Gordon Lyons;  and Tiffany Robinson, Secretary of Labor in Baltimore, Maryland.

Economy Minister Gordon Lyons today hailed Northern Ireland’s cyber security sector as world leading, providing first rate cyber products and services, and said it offered significant benefits to potential investors.

The Minister was speaking during a visit to Maryland as part of his trade visit to the United States where he is promoting Northern Ireland’s key strengths to investors and business leaders. He met with representatives from the state’s Department of Commerce and Department of Labor to strengthen ties under the joint cyber-security Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

Maryland is home to some of the leading security agencies in the US. In October 2019, the Department for the Economy and the state of Maryland’s Department of Commerce and Department of Labor jointly signed a three-year MOU. The aim of the MOU is to capitalise on the opportunities cyber security offers to both economies.

Commenting on the growing importance of Northern Ireland’s cyber security sector, the Minister said: “Northern Ireland has a world class reputation for excellence in cyber security with specialist university research centres, innovative start-ups delivering global cyber security solutions and an impressive cluster of international cyber security investors. This is why we are the number one international investment location for US cyber security firms with Nisos and Agio just some of the US firms choosing to invest with us recently.” 

The Minister continued: “I was pleased to be here today to renew the ties of our cyber security MOU with Maryland. The MOU provides a great opportunity for both Northern Ireland and Maryland to help each other by sharing knowledge and best practice. Nurturing relationships and attracting more high value inward investment is a priority in my 10X Economic Vision. MOU’s can play an important role in helping to support this Vision, which will benefit our economy and our people.”

Also attending the cyber security MOU meeting was Invest Northern Ireland’s Executive Director of International Business, Steve Harper. He said: “The growing importance of Northern Ireland’s cyber security sector cannot be underestimated. This MOU continues to pave the way for both Northern Ireland and the US to work closely together through enhanced research, industry collaboration and new business development. We look forward to continuing to assist the growth of our cyber security sector and support Northern Ireland companies to realise the benefits of this MOU.” 

The Minister also travelled to Washington where he was due to hold a number of meetings, including one with US government energy officials to discuss opportunities around hydrogen. He was then due to attend The Ireland Fund’s 30th National Gala dinner to engage with influential business leaders and US companies.