IBO January 2018 Business Networking Breakfast with Máirtín Ó Muilleoir - Sinn Féin MLA for South Belfast, Publisher, Entrepreneur and Civic Leader

When
Tuesday, January 23, 2018
7:30 AM - 9:00 AM
Location
Fitzpatrick Hotel, 687 Lexington Avenue (between E. 56th & 57th Streets), New York, NY 10022

Registration

IBO 2018 Member – $25.00
IBO 2018 Member & Non-Member Guest – $55.00
Non-Member – $30.00
Non-Member & Non-Member Guest – $60.00

Registration is closed

IBO January 2018 Business Breakfast

Date: Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Time: 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.

Guest Speaker: Máirtín Ó Muilleoir - Sinn Féin MLA for South Belfast, Publisher, Entrepreneur and Civic Leader

Location: Fitzpatrick Hotel, 687 Lexington Avenue (between E. 56th & 57th Streets), New York, NY 10022

An advocate for the new and resurgent Belfast, he has launched a series of initiatives designed to showcase the very best of the city including the the Belfast International Homecoming which promotes links between Belfast and the global Irish Diaspora. He is Chairman of the Belfast Media Group publishing company which includes the New York weekly, The Irish Echo among its titles. Since leading the acquisition of the Irish Echo in 2007, he has prioritized links of mutual benefit between Ireland and the US, with a special focus on the peace process. In 2016, he supported an investor group which took over the Irish American news website IrishCentral.com.

An Irish speaker, he believes strongly in the promotion of culture as the bedrock of successful and diverse communities. He first entered Belfast City Hall in 1987 at the age of 27, subsequently leading a series of court challenges to assure equal treatment for nationalists in the city.

A journalist and author, his books in Irish and English include a history of Belfast City Hall ‘Belfast’s Dome of Delight’ and the novella ‘Ceap Cuddles’.

He left City Hall in 1997 to concentrate on business but returned in 2011 as the first ever Sinn Féin councillor for the Balmoral area of South Belfast.

He served as Lord Mayor of Belfast from June 2013-June 2014 and during his term appointed ten chaplains including representative of the Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist faiths as well as ministers from the four main Christian churches. He also pioneered transatlantic links, signing a sister city agreement with the Mayor of Boston Marty Walsh and welcomed President Obama to Belfast. Among his awards in 2014 were the PRIDE Festival Award for Best Political Contribution to the LGBT Community and the Ancient Order of Hibernians of America JFK Medal, presented in St Louis, Missouri.

He was returned to the Northern Ireland Assembly in May 2016 and appointed to the post of Finance Minister where he pioneered a raft of new initiatives including per cent for art, a social value act and a rethink of property and domestic tax policies. The collapse of the Northern Ireland Executive in January 2017 triggered a fresh election in March 2017 at which he was again returned for South Belfast.

In May 2017, he was the proud recipient of an honorary doctorate from Quinnipiac University in Connecticut.

He is married to Helen O'Hare and they have four children.