 Good afternoon, everybody. It's great to see everybody in person once again. You're very, very welcome indeed. My name is Michael Collins and I have the privilege of being the Director General of the IEA and I'm delighted to welcome everyone to this very special IEA occasion, which we are hosting here in Dublin Castle and more widely through the medium of zoom and YouTube. I'm delighted obviously to welcome you but in doing so let me firstly acknowledge our IEA Board Chair, Rory Quinn, who of course as you all know has also served in the Irish government in many capacities and of course not least as Minister for Finance between 1994 and 1997. So Rory you're very, very welcome indeed. The IEA takes great pride in its role as Ireland's leading think tank on international and European affairs. And over the 30 years since our founding in 1991, we have had the honor of hosting many important visitors. But today is especially significant as we welcome US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to the IEA. We are privileged that she has chosen the Institute to make her remarks this afternoon. As a former Irish Ambassador to the United States, I have a particular appreciation of the importance of the unique bond between our two countries. So to have with us today, side by side, Secretary Yellen and Minister Pascal Dunyu is deeply significant and adds to the already rich history of this most indispensable of relationships. And in welcoming Minister Dunyu as I now do, I do so not only as our Minister for Finance and President of the Eurogroup, but also as someone who has been a really great friend and an active supporter of the IEA over many, many years. So with those brief introductory remarks, I'm now going to hand you over to Dan O'Brien, the Institute's Chief Economist, who will moderate today's events. Thank you for coming. Thank you, Michael. It's great to be back and to see so many familiar faces in person for the first time in such a long time after doing so much of the Institute's business online. It's often an exaggeration when people say that we're living through historic times, but these times really do feel historic in terms of the pandemic over the past 20 months, of course, and in terms of the extraordinary government actions that have taken place which have saved lives and supported livelihoods during this difficult period. It's thus appropriate that we are in historic surroundings for this meeting today. A word on this building. For most of a millennium Dublin Castle was a place for decisions affecting everyone's lives in Ireland were made. It has also been a place where historical figures visiting Ireland down the centuries have come. Exactly a quarter of a millennium ago, for instance, Benjamin Franklin, founding father of the Republic of our American guest today, visited Dublin Castle. Such is its historical import that this very room is where the presidents of our Republic are inaugurated. The Secretary and the Minister today will talk about many of the important bilateral issues that affect both our countries. And by way of setting it up, I'd just like to underscore some of the challenges and uncertainties facing policymakers in these really difficult times. About 15 years ago, European Prime Minister said of managing economies, we know what we need to do. The problem is getting elected after we do it. While the second part remains true, the first part is much less so. Today there is less consensus on how economies should be managed and far more experimentation in policy both macroeconomically and with regards to the role of governments. The new boldness in policymaking is to be seen on both sides of the Atlantic. Here in Europe, a predecessor of Secretary Yellen and indeed the very first US Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton has been cited in the context of the launch of the European Recovery Fund. This Hamiltonian moment, as it has been called, may or may not mirror a deepening of European integration akin to that which happened in the US at the end of the 18th century. In America today, the huge federal government response to the pandemic is being followed by a package of measures the scale of which has not been seen since the new deal of the 1930s. It is a pleasure that the second of our guest speakers today is at the very centre of designing these measures and bringing them to Congress. To introduce the two speakers, Janet Yellen is the 78th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States and the only person ever to have led that department, to have led the Federal Reserve, America Central Bank and to have led the White House Council of Economic Advisers. Our opening speaker today is Pascal Donahue, Geoff the Dohler, or member of Ireland's National Parliament. He has served as President of the Eurogroup, the body of 19 Finance Ministers whose countries form Europe's Monetary Union. Minister Donahue, welcome back to the IEA. Good afternoon, everyone. It is a real privilege to introduce Dr Janet Yellen, US Secretary of the Treasury. This is Secretary Yellen's first visit to Ireland and on behalf of the government, I am delighted to welcome her to Dublin. My thanks in particular to Michael, to Dan and to all the team at the Institute of International European Affairs and here in Dublin Castle for hosting this event. I'd also like to acknowledge the presence this afternoon of the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland, Governor McLoef, the Attorney General of Ireland, Paul Gallagher and my ministerial colleague in the Department of Finance, Minister Sean Fleming. I look forward, as you do, in a few moments to having an opportunity to hear directly from Secretary Yellen. But just before this, I want to offer a few introductory remarks for this very special occasion. I have had the pleasure of working with Secretary Yellen over recent months within the G7 in my capacity as President of the Eurogroup as well as within the OECD process. In what has been a relatively short nine months since Secretary Yellen took office, I have seen just how instrumental she has been in leading a much needed revival of principles based international economic diplomacy. And this approach is delivering real results. We have a landmark agreement to reform international corporate taxation. We have agreed the rapid establishment of a long term emergency financing for small island states and vulnerable low to middle income countries that have been particularly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We have increased our commitments and our collective ambition to ensure that we strive to deliver and meet our net zero targets under the Paris Agreement. And we have a new coordinated approach to address the threats posed by ransomware to our financial systems and other critical infrastructure. In short, President Biden's call, his commitment to build back better was a global call to action. And Secretary Yellen is leading to deliver that commitment. The Secretary, as many of you will know, is of course a renowned economist who carried out her doctoral dissertation at Yale under the supervision of Nobel laureate Professor James Tobin, a close advisor then to President John F. Kennedy. Writing about economics, Professor Tobin said that periods of division are generally followed by periods of synthesis and consolidation from which economic science emerges stronger. I see in Secretary Yellen's international engagement a principled commitment to deliver this synthesis and reject policies that could further fragment our world economy and order. It is up to the international community to reciprocate in good faith. The rest of us cannot step back. Equally, if we seek to move forward together, then we must continue to reach compromises that enable all countries to share in the benefits of broad based prosperity that can deliver both social and environmental progress. And we must actively translate multilateral commitments into practical results that deliver for our societies. We all collectively renew this commitment at a historical juncture. History reminds us that the eras after pandemics are times of great change. Our world, the United States of America, the European Union, Ireland, approach this moment with other dynamics for great change accelerating. The climate crisis, the new possibilities and new challenges created by technology suggest that our time will be one of extraordinary change. We must approach that moment together. Working in unity might not always provide a detailed map, but it is the best compass to guide us through this time. It's important to be equally clear that multilateralism, whether it be within the European Union or indeed across the Atlantic, is not about the absence of national interests. It's about the tone of how we pursue them and realising that the most important priorities are best achieved if we pursue them together. So Secretary Yellen, I remember distinctly during our first meeting, albeit virtually on St Patrick's Day earlier this year, when you told me that your focus would be on addressing the issues facing families and communities that had fallen on hard times. Professor Biden, President Biden, excuse me, has noted how his build back better initiatives has echoes to the hallmark of the New Deal. Indeed, the international component of the New Deal consensus led to the Marshall Plan and US support for the establishment of the European Economic Community, which evolved into today's European Union. The US-EU transatlantic partnership has long been a pillar of this global community, and it has in my view the potential to show leadership in addressing the major issues facing our societies, whether it be climate change, international tax reform, or delivering on international development commitments. While of course it is natural that at times the European Union and the United States will have different views, the key to addressing these differences is true dialogue and true engagement and compromise. Secretary Yellen therefore very graciously accepted my invitation as President of the Eurogroup to appear at our meeting in July for a discussion on economic and financial matters, the first engagement of that kind in the history of the Eurogroup. I think it's fair to say that we had a really rich and indeed an enjoyable exchange of views with really important insights throughout the session, and I know we benefited from the insights of Secretary Yellen. I believe that continued structured engagement will help to reinvigorate the transatlantic economic relationship. To paraphrase John Monet, nothing is possible without human initiative, but nothing can be enduring without institutions. So in this regard, I very much welcome the establishment of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council, which held its first meeting in September, and we should reflect on how we can further build on the transatlantic economic architecture of the future. Next year, I hope that the Eurogroup can play our part in deepening this relationship given the success of our first political dialogue with Secretary Yellen. The recent agreement in the OECD's framework to reform international corporate taxation is of course an emblematic example of a renewal of economic diplomacy and multilateralism. It is a once in a generation moment. It is the capstone to a process of international tax reform that began a decade ago. The leadership shown by Secretary Yellen since taking office was simply instrumental in brokering a fair and a balanced agreement for all. I stated on the 7th of October that joining this agreement is an important decision for the next stage of Ireland's industrial policy. It is important, vital, that Ireland is part of the solution in respect of the future international tax framework. One that will provide the conditions for long-term certainty for businesses and investors to the benefit of many tens of thousands of employees across Ireland. This decision with regard to our corporate tax rate for the very largest of companies was an immensely important decision. It was, and it will be, the right decision. Our tax policy will remain stable and competitive, but is now part of a broader economic model. Our membership of the European Union of the Single Markets, the quality of our education, the skills and innovation of workers in Ireland. But it was the right decision for other reasons too. Ireland must be part of global and European efforts to respond to complex challenges that all countries face as we work together with multiple and historic rhythms of change converging in our time. Our values, our heritage, our future means that Ireland should be influencing, shaping and inside international agreements, not outside of them. We are better in, not out. To make good on our multilateral commitment to provide stability and certainty, we almost now ensure that the implementation respects the letter and the spirit of the agreement. Because I believe the agreement will bring long-term stability and certainty, and I thank Secretary Yellen for her understanding and the interest that she showed to me in listening to Ireland's position on this matter. It is also fitting that her visit to Ireland coincides with our centennial commemoration of our independence as a nation, all the more fitting to be here in Dublin Castle. The location of a handover of power from the British government to a new state. While that process has not been a linear one, and has been at times troubled, the United States has always stood by Ireland as a friend and partner, particularly in its unwavering support for the Good Friday Agreement. The United States has been a major partner in our economic development, and the power of our people-to-people ties have been a significant factor in this regard. Today, many US businesses have made Ireland a home. A large number have been here for decades, and are significant employers, providing good and stable jobs here. But I'm also excited to see companies like Stripe that are born as startups in Ireland then grow and thrive in America. The Irish government will continue to pursue policies that make our country a good location for American and international investment. So in concluding, I offer a personal reflection. To close again from Professor Tobin, who asked the question, do policymakers have the knowledge, the ability to improve macroeconomic outcomes rather than make things worse? In the case of Secretary Yellen, the answer is most definitely yes. I've greatly appreciated working with you since you took office, and I very much look forward to engaging as we deliver on other common interests and shared objectives, both in terms of our EU-USS transatlantic partnership as well as our work in other bodies. Your visit to Ireland today affords us the opportunity to reflect on the strength of our connections of both affinity and ancestry. We are fortunate to have built such strong mutual ties of commerce, of investment and culture. And I have every confidence that these connections will grow from strength to strength in the years ahead. We will build on these connections and we will use them to guide us through our era of change. It is therefore my great privilege to invite the United States Secretary of the Treasury, Dr. Janet Yellen, to address you. Thank you. Well, first my thanks to the IIEA for hosting this event, and of course I want to thank Minister Donahoe. Thank you so much for that wonderful, warm welcome and introduction. But most of all, thank you for your friendship and your honest counsel these past several months. I'll have more to say about that in a moment, but for now, to all of you present here as they say in Ireland, Dia Guive. This is my first visit to Ireland as Secretary of the Treasury, and I have enjoyed every minute of my stay in Dublin so far. Really my only regret is that I'm here for such a short time. Our two nations, Ireland and America, share much in common, not least that both of our governments are currently run by Irishmen. President Biden, as this audience may know, is very proud of his roots here. It's not an uncommon affection. Every 10th American is an Irish American, and the people that Ireland gave to America gave their ideas back to the world. The story of Ireland and America is the centuries-old story of transatlantic exchange, the cross-migration of people and commerce. Today, hundreds of US companies make Ireland their European and international headquarters. And many of these US companies have even been in Ireland so long that some people are surprised to learn they're not Irish. Moreover, despite its small size, today Ireland is an important source of foreign direct investment to the United States. And not only are Irish firms a source of investment into the US, they're a source of employment in the US too. US-Irish trade and investment is a two-way bridge that has and continues to benefit both countries tremendously. Alongside this deep bilateral trade and investment relationship, the US and Ireland also cooperate on a wide array of economic and financial matters, including responding to the pandemic and setting the stage for a sustained global economic recovery. Our two nations share a rich and storied past and have an important friendship today. But that's not why I'm here. I'm here because of how our two nations have recently agreed to help create a stronger, more sustainable and more equitable global economy. On October 8th, a new era of multilateralism began in international tax, one that's aimed at serving the interests of everyday workers and families. 136 countries, Ireland and the US included, agreed to modernize the laws of global commerce. For the first time in a century, nearly 95% of the world's GDP has decided that we're changing how corporations are taxed internationally, in part by imposing a minimum tax on corporate foreign earnings. The agreement also includes strong provisions that will buttress and police the system, incentivizing countries to join and remain within it. That will help to sustain minimum taxes around the world. What does this mean for the world, for Ireland, for the US, and for our relationship that has spammed the ocean in the centuries? That's what I would like to discuss here. The best place to begin is by saying this wasn't destined to happen. It's hard to change the world with the inertia of a century's worth of history. And up until this moment, we lived with an international tax regime that was designed for the world as it existed in the 1920s. Ireland and the US were so much farther apart than every nation was. You could barely travel from New York to Dublin in under a week. If you wanted to send a message between the two cities, the fastest way to do it was via telegram, which would be sent by cable up through the Canadian border, where a clerk would transmit the message by way of Marconi wireless to London and then here. All this is to say, back then no one conceived of a multinational of multinational corporations as they currently exist or the global economy as it currently operates. But then of course the 20th century happened, innovation accelerated, corporations grew bigger and gained more market power, while competition for mobile capital heated up. Borders became permeable, the planet got smaller. As the world changed, the international tax rules largely did not, leading countries and companies to interact in unintended ways, which led to a race to the bottom and corporate taxation. The race to the bottom has deprived our nations of the funding they need to invest in themselves. In Ireland as elsewhere, companies often paid much less than even a low corporate headline tax rate would suggest. Tax competition among nations had created a bigger thy neighbor approach to government policy. We're working in middle class people around the world lost and no country could win in the long term. The system could not hold and so the world began negotiations to change it. And now we've designed a new system and a strong global minimum tax that will serve the interests of everyday families and workers. This global system with its multilateral enforcement tools will help ensure that large multinational corporations pay their fair share in Ireland, just as they will in the rest of the world. In so doing it will provide greater social resources to ensure that our citizens have access to childcare, education and health, improving their lives substantially. This system can enter all nations into a new and more productive form of competition. Instead of asking who can offer the lowest tax rate, it will allow us to ask which nation can offer the best physical and technological infrastructure, and most importantly the most talented workers. In other words, we will compete on the basis of economic fundamentals. And unlike the race to the bottom, this new race can have more than one winner. Both Ireland and the US are well positioned to win that race. Ireland's competitive edge has long been far more than just a low corporate tax rate. Ireland is exhibit A of a country investing in human capital and creating the necessary business ecosystem for sustained growth. However, perception often lags behind reality. Minister Donahoe and I have met several times this past year and he better help me understand just how totemic Ireland's corporate rate is. Yet Ireland's investment in public education has created one of the world's most educated workforces, a globally recognized brand of business certainty and friendliness based on rule of law principles and institutions has made Ireland a place companies want to be based. Ireland is also the only English speaking country in a post Brexit EU with impeccable transatlantic and European bonafides. Although Ireland is small, it is one of the US's closest allies. We know we can rely on Ireland to be our ally, not just in the world, but in Europe and the United States values Ireland's role as a bridge between the US and the EU. Meanwhile, one just has to walk along Dublin's Silicon docks to see that your success is founded on positive non tax benefits. Ireland is a place where real businesses center major activities. It has become one of the most attractive places in Europe to center the EU operations for many of the US's most innovative companies. It has always been Ireland's openness, legal certainty and conducive business culture that helped bring those companies to these shores. These features can and will ensure continued success for Ireland. But it's never easy to make a seismic change and Ireland's support for this agreement is critical and we view this agreement as a once in a generation event and change. We deeply appreciate Ireland's ability to adapt to a changing international tax environment. We look forward to continuing our partnership in other areas too, not least the inviolability of the Good Friday Agreement. The global economy will only thrive by leveling the playing field for businesses and encouraging countries to compete on a positive basis. And that's also why we're moving forward with international tax reform at home. And we're working to go first to implement the global minimum tax in our upcoming reconciliation legislation, helping to lead the world to this better and more secure corporate international tax system. I'm proud of the new international tax deal because it not only provides benefits for everyday families, it will also stabilize the century old international tax system. Importantly, the deal ends the chaotic array of digital service taxes that have discriminated against Irish and US companies. This should put an end to tax and trade disputes that could otherwise hamper economic growth and business investment. And it does so in a way that addresses the growing dissatisfaction that had arisen with a set of rules and norms that failed to account for the fact that with modern technology, companies in a wide variety of sectors can be deeply involved in economies where they do not have headquarters or physical operations. The new reallocation of taxing rights under the agreement instead recognizes that in the modern economy, a business can be meaningfully involved in the economic life of jurisdiction without having physical presence in that jurisdiction. The new international tax deal will also achieve a fairer balance of the revenue needs of all nations. This will in turn ensure that the new rules endure, providing much needed tax certainty to taxpayers and corporations around the world. And so now all countries move forward together, just as they have in the past, with one important difference. We are not pitted against one another anymore. For the United States to prosper, our neighbors and friends too must prosper. In the modern world, recession and instability find ways to wash up upon our shore. Strong and stable economies abroad make us safer. We also emerge, I believe, with the greater reservoir of hope. Hope about what can be accomplished on the world stage. Of course, this deal is a harbinger of good things for the Irish-American relationship. Ireland may be small, but it is large in the American heart and the American mind. You are among our closest allies and we rely on you to be a bridge to the EU. But this deal is also a signifier of our two nations' relationships with the wider world. There is no large problem in the 21st century that will not require some semblance of multilateralism. Climate change, ending the pandemic, the effort for equality and dignity for all people. All of it will take some form of concerted action and this deal bodes well for that. Tax, after all, is neither uncontroversial nor uncomplicated. If we can find agreement on this, then what else can we find agreement on? Let me close by saying this. President Biden is not the only one with an affinity for Irish poets. I developed a great passion for literature in high school and at that time one of the world's most notable playwrights was Samuel Beckett, who I understand was born in Fox Rock and educated at Trinity. Let us do something, Beckett wrote. Let us do something while we have the chance. It is not every day that we are needed. Let us make the most of it before it is too late. Let us represent worthily for one the foul brood to which a cruel fate consigned us. What do you say? For my part, I am beyond grateful to the Irish people for saying yes. Let us make the most of this moment and to conclude, I want to personally thank and applaud the leadership of your finance minister and government for making the hard and brave decision to join the United States and 134 other countries in supporting this unprecedented international framework agreement. Thank you. Thank you both. Very upbeat presentations from you both and very positive. Secretary, if I could come to you first on the transatlantic relationship and obviously you are upbeat about the tax deal, but more broadly, the last few years have brought some challenges, I think it is fair to say in the relationship across the Atlantic. Are there other areas of cooperation that could help bolster economies on both sides of the Atlantic? Well, yes, I see many areas of cooperation between the US and Ireland, the US and the EU and the US and nations around the globe. I feel strongly, President Biden feels strongly that we need to rebuild our transatlantic alliances and support multilateralism. And when you think about the major challenges that we face as a global community, I'm headed to Glasgow this evening where we absolutely need to cooperate to address climate change and to work together. That's another obvious area for cooperation. And of course the pandemic, fighting this pandemic, making sure that it doesn't increase the divide between rich countries and poor countries that we band together to find ways to support poor countries that don't have fiscal space, that haven't had access to the vaccine. We understand that none of us individually can prosper unless we address issues globally. We need to work together to do that. And I think most of the challenges of this century really require that we work together. And, Minister, if I could follow up on the same topic. Are you concerned that here in Europe we're talking about strategic autonomy or some people are talking about strategic autonomy? There may be less enthusiasm for free trade these days. Do you see concerns, do you have concerns that maybe the relationship between Ireland and the US, Europe and the US may have reached a high water mark or that there could be a risk of a disintegration between our economies? The ingredient at the base about strategic autonomy within the European Union is driven by the insights that Secretary Yellen affirmed continually throughout her speech which is that amidst the change that is going on, amidst the new challenges, new opportunities, our countries no matter how big or small can only respond back to those dynamics of their working together. And the concept of strategic autonomy and the debate around us is the next phase of European thinking regarding how collectively we can work better together and respond back to a change in world. Now, in terms of the impact on our transatlantic relationship, I see where we are as anything at all but being a high point. In fact, I see it as a foundation that I believe we're going to build upon. The tone, the difference and the approach of President Biden and Secretary Yellen is already yielding very tangible differences. The new technology council that I mentioned a moment ago, the way we have now managed to come to a very important and deeply significant compromise regarding DSTs and now the engagement that is taking place between the Commission and many parts of President Biden's administration and how we can work together. So we can't be complacent because we have so much to do. But I believe there's real solid evidence that in the nine months that have just passed in this, for example, since Secretary Yellen took over, look at how much we've achieved. It's an imperative for us to look at how we can achieve more together. If I could come back to you, Secretary Yellen, there's a huge interest I think in not only the economics community but more widely in what your government is attempting to do in terms of the scale of your stimulus and new programs that are planned in the United States. Maybe you could, would you talk us a little through about that ambition and whether or not you would advocate that degree of stimulus for other countries, non countries in Europe, for example. Well, the first thing that President Biden emphasized when he was elected was to provide a strong stimulus and response to the pandemic. To make sure that it didn't have the impact of permanently scarring large numbers of people who had lost their jobs and the impact of the pandemic in the United States. I think this was true in many places. It fell disproportionately on those groups who were least able to bear it. In the United States, minorities, particularly women, less skilled workers. And so a package was passed, we call it the American Rescue Package. It contained a very large amount of spending $1.9 trillion in the space of a year, a year and a half. It helped to create jobs we've had over 500,000 jobs a month created since President Biden was elected and our unemployment rate is down to 4.8%. Very different than what we saw after the 2008 financial crisis when there was inadequate fiscal stimulus and it took almost a decade to regain the jobs that were lost. But the focus there was on stimulus creating demand and making sure that aid went particularly to the most vulnerable who had been affected by the crisis. But the more recent plans, we call them the Build Back Better Plan and the Infrastructure Plan that are working their way through Congress right now. They're really focused on longer run challenges addressing problems that have become structural and have been holding back the U.S. economy for a very long time. We've had rising inequality once upon a time, women's labor force participation in the United States was almost top among developed countries that's no longer true. One of the critical reasons I think is because we ranked very low in the United States among developed countries in providing support for childcare, for paid leave, for support for participation in the labor market. And we haven't invested adequately in people. We understand how important education and training are starting in early childhood and continuing on well beyond high school and we need to invest in R&D. Public investment in R&D in the United States has fallen well below the levels that were achieved in the 1960s when the U.S. enjoyed rapid productivity growth. And our infrastructure, our public infrastructure, our roads and bridges are falling apart. Many Americans don't have access to broadband that became hugely important during the pandemic when families found they had to put their children in a car and drive to a parking lot outside of McDonald's for their kids to be able to do their homework to have access to the internet. So we need to do investment in ourselves and the packages that are working through Congress right now, hopefully they will become law this week or next week, but very soon are really meant to address these long term challenges. There's much less, the headline figure may be comparable to the earlier package. We're now looking at a headline, a headline figure for the so-called Build Back Better package that's about one in three quarters trillion, but this has spread over a decade and also it's paid for through raising revenues. Not on working families, not on any family earning under 400,000, but in part thanks to this tax deal by asking companies to pay more corporations that are very profitable and have been doing very well and can afford to contribute the revenues we need to invest in people and wealthy individuals. And better compliance, our Internal Revenue Service has actually been starved for resources over a decade and tax compliance has fallen in the United States shockingly and we want to invest to make sure we collect the taxes that are due under our tax laws. So the focus is really very different, it's on structural problems in the US economy that have slowed growth and resulted in rising inequality and those are the things that are being addressed. I thought that issue of stimulus, as you say, it's so different, the discussion today is so different from the after the great financial crisis where there wasn't such a focus on stimulus. Are you as convinced, Minister, that we just didn't get it right the last time and it's all about government spending more money to pull economies out of downturns and of course I'm going to have to ask you about the corporation tax side given how much we spoke about it today. You know, there's always been a debate I suppose in Ireland about how important it is for our model to to attract a foreign direct investment. You know, in your scheme of things, do you do you think that after all it wasn't as important now that we've signed up to this deal and that Ireland will continue to attract high levels of foreign direct investment. In Ireland, the DNA of the Irish economic model is based on openness. It is based on the integration of a deeply valued transatlantic relations relationship that has a cultural foundation embedded then in our membership of the single market European Union. So in any of the parts that lie ahead of us, I'm absolutely certain that our openness are the role that we play in attracting investment but also allowing our companies to scale up and invest abroad is an essential element of our economic model. And yes, the change that we're making in our corporate tax rate may indeed pose challenges, particularly from a revenue point of view. I believe it's the right thing for Ireland. I believe it's right that we make this change. You heard Secretary Yellen speak but all of the challenges there for America that our world is aware of and Ireland has a role to play in a deeply important solution being reached to a deeply urgent issue. And it gets the balance right between our competitiveness that has many, many, many aspects of us and our role and our place in the world. So I will continue to make the case for what we've done really value the time that Secretary Yellen is spending here in Ireland to echo the importance of the transatlantic relationship. And then on your final point regarding the aftermath between where we are now and where we were a decade ago. I can't help but feel that if we've been here in this hall a number of years ago, you know, the Irish author and the quote that was most frequently used was of course, it's asking can the center hold. And what I'm certainly aware of as a policymaker now within Ireland and Europe is because this crisis was so fundamentally different to the last crisis crisis roots in a rooted in biology in a dreadful disease that we have to be able to show to our other countries that we can handle this and respond to it far better far differently and far more effectively. And I think all of us are embarked in the effort to make the case for that. And just as Secretary Yellen and President Biden are embarking on their build back better initiative. We will now have the recovery fund within the European Union, providing additional funding, just as our recovery is taking hold. And just a common view that we have across the Atlantic about how we need to do differently and better in responding back to the health crisis that we're trying to emerge from. I am conscious at the time secretary and I know you have a flight to catch but would you have time for one more. One of the upbeat aspects of your talking you raised again there was this issue of scarring or the belief that the shock economy suffered during the pandemic that it would leave a lasting effect. And perhaps in the United States participation in the labor market has declined. Many workers have not come back. Do you see that as a shorter term thing that will readjust or is that a scarring effect that will have a longer lasting impact on the productive capacity of the American economy. Well, labor force participation has declined. And although there's quite a bit of demand for workers now. Many workers are remaining outside of the workforce and you ask a good question. Is it transitory or is it permanent, I must say, I, I'm uncertain. To some extent, the pandemic, I think, push people to retire we saw was of retirements and many of those people may not come back into the But it probably accelerated some retirements that would have occurred over the coming years. Also, we see particularly for women labor force participation is depressed. And I would say part of it has to do, I believe, with the pandemic and the health concerns, particularly among people working in the service sector that involves a great deal of human contact, there remain concerns about the pandemic. Childcare arrangements in the United States are not back to normal. Children are mainly back to school, but with the pandemic, continuing, continuing, especially in some parts of the country. Schooling arrangements have been disrupted. So I do expect to see over time some revival of labor force participation, but I think we don't have a perfect read at this point on exactly why it's diminished. Certainly people feel good about their ability to get jobs now and most businesses are actually having a hard time funding workers. Minister, you since taking over as president of the Eurogroup, it's been an eventful time. Are you optimistic that Europe, the Eurozone countries can avoid the kind of arguments they had both in the past after the after the after the last recession, and indeed in the first couple of months of the pandemic when there were differences, very strong differences of opinion about the recovery fund and the issuance of bonds by the European institutions. Do you foresee those arguments coming back and disagreements, or do you think there's a greater consensus on how to proceed? Democracy and political processes are all about different views, and it would be an unrealistic expectation to set that we can forge a consensus regarding the future of economic governance within the Eurozone and the European Union without there being different views, different part emphasis, and different concepts of what the future should hold from a fiscal policy point of view. But I'm very confident that we will reach agreement at the end of us, while the process ahead and the debates ahead may well be at times be intense. We've also seen the value of consensus during the crisis. We have seen that while it can take the European Union, sometimes a period of intense discussion to reach agreement, once we reach agreement, it's durable, it's resilient, it holds and it's implemented. And the resilience of our agreements means that the intensity of getting to that point is a price worth paying. So we're going to go through that phase again, and at the end of that phase we'll find an agreement regarding the future of our fiscal policy within the European Union, and then I'm confident that we'll be able to implement it. Thank you. Well look, thank you all for coming today. I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have and my colleagues have as well. It's fantastic to be back and to see people in person and engage. And of course, thank the Secretary and the Minister for not only coming and speaking to us, but for giving even more of their time than was originally proposed. So thank you both. It's been fascinating. Thank you.