artharg

michael scrip said:

I also read that Steve Jobs started doing business in Ireland in 1980.  Seems like they've had a relationship with Ireland for quite a while!

Yeah, to do business in Europe it really helps to have a subsidiary in Europe. The main reasons Apple (and a lot of other companies, like Microsoft and Dell) set up in Ireland were the fact that people there speak English, wages were low (and probably still are) compared to the UK, connections to the mainland are excellent, accessibility for ships is excellent and plenty of space near sea ports was available at a reasonable price.

The tax deal with the Irish government dates from a time when Apple was already well established at Cork. Ireland benefitted from the deal as well: every job at Apple is one less count of welfare. And that's not counting the indirect benefits to the local economy.