[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 21 (Tuesday, March 1, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1860-S1861]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            WILLIE McCARTER

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I want to take a few moments today to 
acknowledge the work and leadership of Willie McCarter who has served 
for the past 15 years as chairman of the International Fund for 
Ireland, IFI.
  The IFI was conceived by my old friend Tip O'Neill who secured the 
original funding in 1986. Willie McCarter became involved with the fund 
in 1989 and became chairman in 1992. Under his tenure, the fund 
flourished and became an integral economic tool that helped bring peace 
and understanding in Northern Ireland.

[[Page S1861]]

  The investments that the IFI made in border counties provided an 
economic boost to communities that had no hope. In tumultuous times 
where communities were divided by religion, the IFI sponsored projects 
that not only created desperately needed jobs but employment where 
Catholics and Protestants worked side by side.
  Marcelle and I have become close friends with Willie and his wife 
Mary. I know that our friendship will transcend his departure as 
chairman from the IFI. We look forward to visits with both of them here 
and in Ireland for many years to come.
  The Irish Times interviewed Willie McCarter prior to his stepping 
down as chairman of the IFI at the end of February. I ask unanimous 
consent that the entire article be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                  [From the Irish Times, Feb. 4, 2005]

             Fund Chairman Prepares To Bid a Fond Farewell

       Willie McCarter, who is stepping down as chairman of the 
     International Fund for Ireland, tells Siobhan Creaton, 
     Finance Correspondent, of its many achievements.
       After 15 years as a key figure at the International Fund 
     for Ireland (IFI), Derry-born businessman Willie McCarter is 
     preparing for departure.
       At the end of February he will relinquish the chairman's 
     role to Denis Rooney. Mr. Rooney is a chartered quantity 
     surveyor and businessman from Northern Ireland whom the 
     British and Irish governments have hailed as a skilled and 
     able leader for the fund.
       Mr. McCarter will be sad to say goodbye but says he is 
     proud of the IFI's contribution towards creating a more 
     stable community in Northern Ireland.
       The fund, which has committed 768 million to 5,500 projects 
     in the North and border counties, was set up by the Irish and 
     British governments in 1986 as a vehicle to promote economic 
     regeneration and reconciliation in Northern Ireland and the 
     six border counties.
       The late U.S. politician T.P. `Tipp' O'Neill championed the 
     idea after a visit to Donegal and Derry.
       ``John Hume brought him to see his grandmother's home 
     outside Buncrana in 1985 and later they went to Derry. That 
     was during the dark days of unemployment and Tipp said he 
     would try to do something to create jobs,'' Mr. McCarter 
     says.
       In Washington, O'Neill's quest to raise financial aid for 
     the region was supported by President Reagan and resulted in 
     the U.S. Government pledging $50 million (EUR 38.4 million) 
     for this purpose.
       The British and Irish governments, which had concluded the 
     Anglo-Irish Agreement, used the money to start the IFI in 
     1986.
       It was a controversial vehicle and, having grown out of 
     this agreement, was viewed with deep suspicion by Northern 
     Ireland's Protestant community.
       Mr. McCarter, a Protestant, recalls the fund's initial 
     difficulties.
       ``It had very few friends. It got bound up in the political 
     to-ing and fro-ing around the Anglo Irish Agreement.''
       In 1989, Mr. McCarter, who was chief executive of Fruit of 
     the Loom, the clothing manufacturer that was rapidly 
     expanding in Donegal and Derry, was asked to get involved. 
     The US clothing manufacturer had invested in Mr. McCarter's 
     women's underwear manufacturing plant in Buncrana in 1985 and 
     had agreed to invest GBP 18.5 million (EUR 26.8 million) and 
     to grow its workforce in Donegal and Derry to 3,500.
       ``I was up to my tonsils running Fruit of the Loom,'' he 
     says. ``I spoke to John Holland his mentor in the US about 
     getting involved in the fund. He said it would be very good 
     for me and for the company.''
       Mr. Holland ended the conversation saying: ``I am sure you 
     would be able to do that as well as run the company''.
       In 1992, his involvement with the fund increased when he 
     took over as chairman.
       ``The fund was a subtle way to bring people from both 
     communities together. Instead of giving them cups of tea and 
     saying `let's get reconciled', it used job creation to give 
     people an economic focus. In a low-key way, the fund brought 
     people from both communities into projects to provide a human 
     dynamic and develop relationships that would not have existed 
     in a divided society.''
       Some of its flagship undertakings include the re-opening of 
     the Shannon-Erne waterway, while many town centres have been 
     given a face-lift with its support.
       Mr. McCarter believes the fund's ability to be the first to 
     put its cash on the table to back new projects has been a 
     tremendous asset in terms of providing a kick-start for fresh 
     ideas. Its role in the Shannon-Erne waterway, he says, is a 
     good example of what the fund can do.
       ``When it was first mentioned, it was regarded as a 
     completely mad project. The fund commissioned a GBP 1 million 
     feasibility study that showed it might work. We later put 
     another GBP 5 million into it and attracted other investment. 
     If the fund hadn't put GBP 1 million down initially, the 
     Shannon-Erne waterway wouldn't have happened,'' he says.
       The fund claims to have played a central role in bringing 
     about the joint marketing of Ireland as a tourist destination 
     by the authorities in the North and the Republic. It has also 
     fostered closer linkages between Cork, Trinity and Queen's 
     universities in the field of microelectronics.
       ``A lot of initiatives have worked but the fund's role has 
     been forgotten,'' according to Mr. McCarter. ``I am glad that 
     the fund is seen as a fair and reputable dealer. I have 
     worked with very gifted people on the board and in the 
     communities who have made a great contribution.''
       While US presidents have played a crucial role in 
     supporting the peace process and the IFI's work, its 
     contribution to the fund has been reduced from $25 million to 
     $18.5 million under the Bush administration due to budgetary 
     pressures.
       Mr. McCarter says this figure is ``not half bad'' and 
     suggests that the Bush administration has been misjudged in 
     terms of its commitment to Ireland.
       ``President Bush may not have the same personal interest as 
     President Clinton but the administration has a very tangible 
     interest in Ireland, the peace process and the fund. Support 
     in the Senate and the House of Representatives remains 
     extremely strong. These people are made of stern stuff. They 
     will see things through until there is a stable society,'' he 
     says.
       While the peace process is currently at an impasse, Mr 
     McCarter believes there is little danger that the enormous 
     strides made, in terms of improving relationships and raising 
     prosperity, will be reversed.
       ``I don't think it will unravel. Too many people can see 
     the benefits. I have lived in a border area all of my life 
     and can see a tangible change.''
       Mr McCarter was ousted from Fruit of the Loom in 1997 
     following differences with its then owner, US corporate 
     raider Bill Farley. The exit of the McCarter family from the 
     business was a blow for the workforce and signalled the end 
     of an era in terms of job security. The workforce has dropped 
     to around 500, with the entire operations to be moved to 
     Morocco over the next three to four years.
       ``When it goes to Morocco, it will be after 20 years in the 
     north- west. It did a lot of good. Fruit of the Loom led to a 
     lot of people making lives for themselves and was influential 
     in improving the local infrastructure. I will be sorry to see 
     it go. I am very fond of Donegal and Derry, which now need a 
     substantial investment.''
       In the future, Mr McCarter says his main interest will be 
     in Cooley Distillery, the independent whiskey maker founded 
     by his long-time friend, John Teeling. Mr McCarter is a 
     director and is also on the board of Norish. He is keen to 
     get involved in other businesses.
       ``I already do quite a lot of work at Cooley and am looking 
     for more non-executive roles,'' he says. ``I would also like 
     to find some way of retaining the many US connections I have 
     made over the years.''

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