Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 13 May 1997

Vol. 479 No. 2

Written Answers. - Foreign Investment.

Rory O'Hanlon

Question:

293 Dr. O'Hanlon asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment his views on the lack of inward investment to much of the Border region, particularly in view of the EU, US and Irish Federation of Industry support, and the level of economic growth nationally; and the plans, if any, he has to attract further overseas investment to the Border region. [12950/97]

Minister for Enterprise and Employment (Mr. R. Bruton)

I share the Deputy's concern about the lack of inward investment to the regions in general, including the Border region. That is what prompted the Government earlier this year to caterogise regional jobs policy as a priority area for attention. On foot of this, I announced last March that I had asked IDA Ireland to press ahead with the implementation of a new regional policy for employment growth in locations outside the larger urban centres. IDA Ireland has committed additional resources at senior executive level to oversee this new focus on the regions which will involve financial incentives will now be biased in favour of smaller regional locations, with higher grant levels as appropriate to each individual case; with the involvement of private sector investors, stimulating and supporting a major programme of modern advance factory construction at key regional locations and working in partnership with local authorities to have available quality, serviced sites at priority locations for new industrial investment.

The Deputy will appreciate that the decision as to location is ultimately made by the incoming industrialists. While this will continue to be the case, I feel the new regional policy to be administered by IDA Ireland will give an added bonus to smaller locations.

On the specific question of the Border region, the Deputy may be interested to know that the industrial development agencies under the remit of my Department were actively marketing the region for investment even before the announcement of the new regional policy focus and a certain level of progress has been achieved.

In the last year, IDA Ireland, for example, issued a number of press reports regarding inward investment and job creation-expansion in the Border counties. Following is a random sample of such announcements—

Name of Company	Total Investment	Total Job Potential
DSC Communications (Louth)	£17m	475
Westmark (Leitrim)	£3m	88
Engineered Plastics (Louth)	£21m	300
Pauwels Trafo (Cavan)	£6m	129
Abbot Laboratories (Sligo)	$12m	50
Stiefel Laboratories (Sligo)	£12m	60

Forbairt, for its part, with its mandate for promoting the food and natural resource based sectors, has also been busy in attracting investment to the Border region. The large Heinz facility in Dundalk, secured under the inward investment programme for the food industry, is one of the agency's notable successes in the area. The forest products sector is another good example of Forbairt's commitment to the area — the impact of the Masonite project on Leitrim and surrounding counties has already been substantial and the company hopes to increase its employment level to 330 by next year.

The Border counties are also being assisted by the operation of a number of programmes which have been established with the specific aim of encouraging and developing partnerships between Irish companies in the six Border counties and firms in the US. I refer the Deputy to Question No. 27 of 6 March last Volume 43, No. 1, columns 112-115 in which I detailed progress under these various programmes and initiatives. To date, 13 partnerships have been secured under these programmes and discussions are ongoing with a number of other companies. The ultimate aim of these programmes is to strengthen the management and profitability of Irish industry through the provision of training, access to technology and the formation of strategic alliances.

While not directed at the Border counties specifically, the latter are also likely to benefit from work which is ongoing on the development of a Dublin-Belfast economic corridor. The joint business council of IBEC/CBI Northern Ireland is currently developing a business plan and longterm strategy for the corridor area aimed at complementing, rather than replacing, existing cross-Border initiatives.