Sharon Keogan: Congratulates Trump, Warns Ireland on Key Issues
Sharon Keogan congratulated President Donald Trump on his election win and said the result should be a wake-up call for Ireland's politicians. She warned that rising inflation, the cost of living, homelessness and crime resonated with US voters and questioned whether Ireland is any different.
Reaction to US election
Sharon Keogan told colleagues she congratulated President Donald Trump on his win and described the result as the people's choice. She said the outcome should serve as a wake-up call for Irish politicians pushing agendas she argued are not in the best interests of the Irish people.
Domestic issues highlighted
She listed a series of domestic concerns she said had resonated with voters in the United States - rising inflation, cost of living, homelessness, crime-ridden cities, dereliction, drug-infested areas and so-called no-go cities - and asked whether Ireland faces similar problems.
Engagement with new administration
Keogan urged Ireland to engage with the incoming US administration, saying it is better to be at the table discussing and engaging than shut out. She called for the economy and fiscal policies to be prepared to withstand potential shocks and said Ireland must strive for world peace and engage fearlessly, even with those it disagrees with.
Warning on power-up grant access
She issued a practical warning about the government's 4,000 euro power-up grant, telling businesses that unless applicants select the retail and hospitality option on the application they will not receive the payment. Keogan advised non-retail and non-hospitality businesses to press the retail and hospitality button to ensure access to the 4,000 euro grant.
We publish thousands of recordings to make Irish politics transparent and resistant to manipulation. Spotted an error? Report it — together we are building a reliable archive of Irish politics.
And thank you for your... Thank you. And I suppose I'll start off by congratulating President Donald Trump on his win. The people have spoken and President Trump is their choice. This should be a wake-up call for Ireland's politicians with regard to pushing agendas that are not in the best interests of the Irish people. Rising inflation, cost of living, homelessness, crime-ridden cities, dereliction, drug-infested areas, no-go cities are just some of the many issues that resonated with voters in the States. But are we any different here? Patriotism will always win over globalism when the politics system does not work for its citizens. So we must embrace the challenges ahead for us as an economy and engage with the new administration in the coming weeks to ensure that our economy and our fiscal policies are ready to deal with any shocks that may unfold. It's always better to be sitting at the table discussing and engaging than being outside any door. We Irish must always strive for world peace and engage fearlessly for that peace, even with those we do not agree with. Another issue that I want to point out this morning is the power-up grant, the 4,000 power-up grant that the government announced. And I want to make this known to businesses out there that are not in the retail and the hospitality sector. If you press other business on your application form this morning, you are not getting your power-up grant. You must press the button for retail and hospitality and only then will you get your 4,000 power-up grant. So that's a warning for all businesses this morning to ensure that they do and are able to access that 4,000 grant. Thank you.
Thank you for downloading 🙏
If you publish this material on social media, we would be very grateful if you tagged VideoParliament. It helps us reach more people and keep building a transparent archive of Irish politics.
