The British ambassador to Ireland, Kara Owen, has outlined a strengthening economic relationship between the UK and Ireland, with Northern Ireland playing a unique role.

In a speech at the Dublin Economic Workshop in Wexford, Owen noted that bilateral trade exceeded €2 billion per week in 2025, making Ireland the UK's sixth-largest trading partner. Irish investment in the UK stood at £77.4 billion in 2024, with 20 per cent of that going to the north of England.

Owen said the Common Travel Area allows free movement of people, skills and ideas, underpinning deeply integrated labour markets and economies. She stressed that Northern Ireland occupies a unique position in both the EU Single Market and the UK's internal market.

As co-guarantors of the Belfast Agreement, both countries share a commitment to peace, stability and prosperity in Northern Ireland, Owen said.

She highlighted opportunities in offshore wind energy, saying Ireland possesses one of Europe's richest untapped offshore wind resources. Existing interconnectors already demonstrate the benefits of practical co-operation, and together the UK and Ireland can reduce costs, strengthen energy security, attract investment and create skilled jobs.

In technology, Owen said Ireland is one of Europe's leading hubs, while the UK is home to a technology ecosystem worth more than $1 trillion. Both have complementary strengths in digital infrastructure, semiconductors, cyber and advanced technologies.

Owen also pointed to the UK-Ireland work programme to 2030, developed for the summit in Liverpool and extended at the summit in Cork, which provides a framework for co-operation on growth, infrastructure, innovation and security.

Recent high-level engagement includes a meeting between UK prime minister Andy Burnham and Taoiseach Micheál Martin, and discussions between defence secretary Wes Streeting and Ireland's minister for defence Helen McEntee.