asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he will indicate the failure rate of grant assisted industries over the past five years; and if he will give details of the total amount of State investment and the number of jobs lost.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Grant Assisted Industries.
66.
In the past five years— I include the present year—16 firms which had received new industry grants from An Foras Tionscal closed, representing about four per cent of the total number approved during that period.
The total amount paid by An Foras Tionscal in grants to these 16 firms was £1,631,152.
I take it that when the Deputy refers to jobs lost he has in mind the number of operatives employed by the 16 firms which closed. I understand that the maximum aggregate number employed by these firms was about 2,000. It is not correct, however, to say that this number of jobs has been lost as a result of these closures since many of the workers were re-employed by the firms which acquired the closed factories or were absorbed by other firms either before or after the closings.