Captains of industry salute 'one of the best'

Business leaders and organisations yesterday paid tribute to the Minister for Finance on his nomination to the European Commission.

Mr Turlough O'Sullivan, director general of the Irish Business and Employers' Confederation (IBEC), said in a statement that Mr McCreevy was one of the best ministers for finance.

"He kept public finances in order and presided over substantial reductions in both personal and corporate tax," Mr O'Sullivan said. "He made a major contribution to improving the incentive to work and encouraging people to engage in enterprise activity. IBEC wishes him every success in his important new role in the EU."

Mr Pat Delaney, director of the Small Firms' Association, said Mr McCreevy had made an outstanding and lasting contribution to small business, adding that his legacy would have an enduring impact on the economy.

"The past seven years have been a watershed for the ability of small business to invest and expand," he said. "Mr McCreevy has demonstrated that by reducing taxes on capital the tax take in those areas would increase." He listed cutting corporation tax to 12.5 per cent and reducing capital gains and capital acquisitions tax as key achievements.

But Mr Delaney warned that Mr McCreevy's successor had to keep a firm hand on the Exchequer and only allow rises in public spending on areas of necessity, and only then in return for guarantees of quality and value for money.

The Irish Small and Medium-sized Enterprise association said the key issue for business was Mr McCreevy's successor. "Our concern is who is going get this most important portfolio," a spokesman said. "It's absolutely imperative that the individual taking up the job does not fritter away the gains of the last number of years. The purse strings cannot be opened up to satisfy the backbenchers."

The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland, of which Mr McCreevy is a member, said it was hopeful that the Taoiseach would secure a high-profile economic commissionership for the Minister, in recognition of Ireland's successful EU presidency.

"There is no doubt that business has profited under Charlie McCreevy's tenure as Minister for Finance," ICAI president Mr Terence O'Rourke said. "We wish him well in Europe and believe that the European Union will now benefit from the application of his considerable talents."