Tánaiste Leo Varadkar praised Business Plus founders Nick Mulcahy and Siobhan O'Connell for their efforts over the past 24 years at an event to celebrate the magazine's acquisition by DMG Media Ireland and the relaunch of its website on Wednesday

The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment was welcomed to DMG Media's new Hub on Haddington Road by CEO Paul Henderson, before speaking to invited guests.

Mr Varadkar, who had just returned from a big tech tour on the west coast of the United States, was suitably impressed the state of the art studio and digital hub at DMG comparing it to the best facilities he had seen on the recent trip.

Business Plus was acquired by DMG Media in January and is now benefiting from the resources of the new owner.

Speaking before assembled guests, the Tánaiste said that "countless businesses across Ireland" had benefitted from Business Plus' news, commentary and analysis over the past quarter of a century.

In Association with

"Your new partnership with DMG Media is a vote of confidence in your magazine. The digital launch also marks an exciting next step in your journey, opening up new possibilities," Varadkar said.

"Establishing a new publication in Ireland is a brave thing to do. In 1998, the internet was still in its early days. Google was just being set up – a little known company – not an everyday verb.

"It’s testament to the founders that the publication has survived and prospered," he said after referencing the last recession, the EU-IMF bailout, Brexit, Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine.

Mr Henderson added: "Business Plus is an incredible brand. Through our channels we get the magazine into more retailers than ever and with the new businessesplus.ie site we can bring the great content to a new domestic and global audience.

"It was an honour to have the Tánaiste visit us and his encouragement for our progressive form of multi-platform publishing was well received by both the staff and guests at the event."

Mr Varadkar also outlined the government's efforts to support media in a changing landscape, including the establishment of the Future of Media Commission, signing the EU's Copyright Directive into Irish law, the Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill, the National Digital Strategy, and a review of defamation laws.

Of the recently submitted Future of Media Commission report, the Tánaste said the government is still considering how to move forward.

"To use that old cliché, we can’t let this report sit on the shelf like so many others. Its recommendations really matter – for our democracy, for journalism and for our citizens," he added.

He stated that the Copyright directive would have to be monitored for effectiveness and that changes to the Defamation Act would have to strike a balance between freedom of expression, the right to one's good name, and the right of access to justice.

The Fine Gael leader went on to say that he was confident that a record 2.5m people would be in work by 2023 as the country continues to emerge from the pandemic and returned to full employment.

Concluding his remarks, the Tánaiste congratulated Business Plus and DMG on the acquisition and wished the companies the best of luck for the next 25 years.