Businessman quits Invest NI over alleged north west discrimination

Kieran Kennedy resigned during an Invest NI meeting in June, saying he had lost faith in its leadership team

One of the north west's best known business figures has resigned from the board of Invest NI after alleging Northern Ireland's economic development agency discriminates against the region.

Kieran Kennedy, a former managing director of O'Neill's Sports and the chairman of Strabane's Business Improvement District, quit in June, five years after he first joined in March 2020.

Minutes of that meeting show Mr Kennedy saying he had lost faith in Invest NI's leadership team after a discussion about the agency's office in Londonderry.

A spokesperson for Invest NI said they placed regional development, including further development in the north west, "at the centre of its new strategy".

Invest NI said recent investments announced by client companies such as EY, FinTrU, Alchemy and Seagate in the region were "evidence of this commitment".

"In 2024/25, Invest NI supported a total of 236 investments in the north west, provided financial support of £22m and generated total investment of £165m," they added.

In 2023 an independent review into Invest NI concluded it needed urgent improvements in leadership, operations and public accountability.

The review further found that decision making was largely centralised in Belfast.

What did the Invest NI minutes say?

The minutes of the June Invest NI meeting, as first reported by the Irish News, detail discussion about the location of Invest NI's North West Regional Office.

The agency's director of regional business, Iain Joannides, said a decision had been made to remain at its current premises.

He added that while the agency would stay at the Timber Quay site in Londonderry, it would continue to explore other options.

Mr Kennedy was asked if he wished to make any further comment.

The minutes state Mr Kennedy said he was "angry and disappointed" with the decision and that he did not see any change in culture in the leadership team.

He stated that, in his opinion, the team was not committed to achieving regional balance and felt that the north west was being discriminated against.

He further stated that, in his opinion, the executive committee did not want to make alternative locations work and he had lost all faith in them as a leadership team.

Mr Kennedy concluded by tendering his resignation from Invest NI's board.

Chair of the board, John Healy stated that on careful reading of the paper provided to the board, the operational decision reached is the only option that is currently viable, but finding a best fit for the regional office in the north west is a continuing priority.

Mr Healy told Kieran Kennedy he was disappointed with his decision and that he thought he was wrong.

The minutes then state Mr Kennedy left the meeting.

Mr Healy stated the leadership team had the board's full support in relation to the north west office.

BBC News NI has approached Mr Kennedy for comment.

'Damning indictment'

In a post on social media platform X on Tuesday, Foyle MP Colum Eastwood said: "Kieran Kennedy's principled decision shows how bad things are with the executive's failure to drive economic investment outside Belfast."

Foyle SDLP MLA Sinead McLaughlin said reports of Mr Kennedy's resignation was a "worrying development".

"For him to resign in frustration is a damning indictment of the lack of progress to date," she said.

A Sinn Féin spokesperson said the party had made "driving forward progress and opportunity in the north west a top priority in the executive".

Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald is "committed commitment to developing a regionally balanced economy"

The Department for the Economy said regional balance was a "top priority" for the minister, Caoimhe Archibald.

The department's sub-regional economic plan, it added, sets out Dr Archibald's "commitment to developing a regionally balanced economy where everyone shares in the benefits of prosperity."

It said the local economic partnership in Derry and Strabane would receive £5m over the next three years to give businesses "greater autonomy and support to make decisions based on local need".

The department also pointed to major recent investments in the region by Seagate, EY, Alchemy and FinTrU, as well as growth at the Ulster University campus in Derry.