{"id":21306,"date":"2022-01-27T09:40:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-27T09:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/factcheckni.org\/?p=21306"},"modified":"2022-02-27T22:04:47","modified_gmt":"2022-02-27T22:04:47","slug":"is-what-northern-ireland-buys-from-great-britain-four-times-more-valuable-than-from-ireland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/factcheckni.org\/topics\/economy\/is-what-northern-ireland-buys-from-great-britain-four-times-more-valuable-than-from-ireland\/","title":{"rendered":"Is what Northern Ireland buys from Great Britain four times more valuable than from Ireland?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This claim is accurate. In 2019, the ratio of the estimated total value of Northern Ireland purchases from<\/em> Great Britain (\u00a313.4bn) to purchases from Ireland (\u00a33.0bn) was 4.5:1. The ratio has been similar since 2013. However, the figures may not tell the full story as they do not provide information on transport\/shipping routes or the country of origin of any goods purchased.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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On 14 January 2021, the DUP published a document, \u201c7 reasons the Irish Sea border must go\u201d<\/a>, in order to \u201c[highlight] the impact of the Protocol on Northern Ireland and the wider United Kingdom\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the claims in the document is \u201cNorthern Ireland purchases from Great Britain (\u00a313.4bn) are four times more valuable than of Ireland (\u00a33.0bn).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The DUP told FactCheckNI that the figures were sourced from a Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) publication on the Broad Economy Sales and Export Statistics<\/a> (BESES) and a slide<\/a> that shows \u201cTotal Value of NI Purchases and Imports by Origin 2018\u20132019\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BESES is an experimental annual measure<\/a> of local businesses\u2019 sales and purchases to markets inside and outside Northern Ireland. Traders in the public sector, finance, and agriculture sectors are not captured by BESES; ther exclusions and further information on the strengths and limitations is available in the BESES reference guide<\/a>. The statistics are used by<\/a> the Department for the Economy (DfE), the Department of Agriculture Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), the Department for Exiting the EU (DExEU), and other economists and policy makers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NISRA breaks down sales and purchases under the following definitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 1. Overview of definitions<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Source: NISRA<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The NISRA BESES bulletin<\/a> covering purchases within Northern Ireland and from<\/em> other places<\/em> is relevant to this claim. Key points include total purchases (goods and services) by companies in Northern Ireland in 2019 were estimated to be worth \u00a346.4bn, and purchases within Northern Ireland represent 54% of all purchases made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For 2019 purchases made by<\/em> Northern Ireland companies, the value of purchases from Great Britain (\u00a313.4bn) is 4.5 times greater than the value of imported goods and services from Ireland (\u00a32.9bn); the claim is accurate. The ratio has been similar between these two markets since 2013<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key points of this bulletin are illustrated in the following graphic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 2. Purchases and imports of goods and services by Northern Ireland companies, by trade partner (2019) (\u00a3billions)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Source: NISRA<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

NISRA notes that BESES data does not provide information on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n