Future Mayo visit by Canadian Prime Minister discussed with Ambassador
A historic homecoming could soon be on the cards as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is considering a personal and symbolic visit to County Mayo, where both his grandparents were born and raised.
Minister Alan Dillon confirmed that early high-level discussions are underway following a meeting in Mayo with Canadian Ambassador Dennis King, raising hopes of a visit to his ancestral roots.
“Prime Minister Carney has deep family roots in Ayle, Aughagower, near Westport and it would be an honour to welcome him here. There’s genuine interest in making this happen and I fully support any government effort to facilitate a visit of this magnitude,” said Minister Dillon.
While no official confirmation has been made yet, there is a strong interest in organising a future visit. A visit of this kind would carry huge symbolic significance for the people of Mayo. I’m hopeful we can turn that ambition into reality.”
The meeting between Minister Dillon and Ambassador King also focused on supercharging Irish-Canadian ties in key areas including trade, enterprise, education and tourism.
“We had a dynamic and forward-looking conversation about how we can strengthen bilateral trade under CETA, particularly by helping our businesses diversify export markets in light of ongoing US trade tariffs. Canada is a vital growth market for Irish agriculture, and there’s huge potential to ramp up foreign direct investment (FDI) between our two economies,” said Minister Dillon.
The pair also explored enhanced collaboration in the education sector, including student exchanges and research partnerships, as well as increasing inward visitor numbers to Ireland through joint tourism efforts, especially where shared heritage can be celebrated.
“This meeting marked the beginning of what I hope will be a deeper, long-term partnership with Canada,” Minister Dillon concluded. “I look forward to working closely with Ambassador King and the Embassy in building this relationship and, hopefully, welcoming Prime Minister Carney to Mayo in the near future.”
Ambassador King, on his visit to Mayo yesterday, also met with the cathaoirleach of Mayo County Council, Councillor John O'Hara, and director of services Catherine McConnell.