Vol. 515 No. 6
68 Mr. Stanton asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of companies which ceased trading in each of the years from 1997 to 1999; the number of these companies classed in each year as small, medium or large; the number of employees affected in each class in each year; the number of foreign based and indigenous companies per class in each year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6900/00]
The annual employment survey undertaken by Forfás indicates that among clients assisted by the development agencies for which I am responsible, Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and Shannon Development, 375 establishments closed in 1997, 284 in 1998 and 271 in 1999. A comprehensive presentation relating to the detail of the question is set out in the following table.
The table is indicative of the regular life cycle of business, as firms start and grow but with some casualties along the way as market forces take their toll. Employment is dependent on the success or failure of individual firms in the market economy and it is inevitable that some firms will fail, as indeed many more will thrive and generate additional employment and wealth throughout the economy. While job losses are not always avoidable, one objective of enterprise policy is to limit losses as far as possible by helping indigenous companies achieve stronger positions of sustainable competitive advantage. It is an objective of industrial policy to encourage foreign companies that have plants here to become more deeply embedded in the economy as a means of ensuring their prospects of longevity. New foreign investments tend to involve higher value added, more advanced technologies and more knowledge intensive products and services. As such, these tend not to suffer competitive disadvantages to the same extent as firms whose technology is less advanced. Technology, productivity and market driven innovation help firms locating in Ireland to be more resilient to competitive pressures which can lead to job losses.
Job losses must be seen in the context of overall strong economic growth, declining unemployment and sustained employment expansion throughout the economy. Last year was the sixth successive year of strong growth and this is reflected in the numbers of new jobs created with the assistance of the development agencies. Among their clients, 120,268 new jobs were created between 1997 and 1999, leaving net employment 54,436 higher. Total employment in the broader economy as measured by the CSO's quarterly national household survey expanded by just over 211,000 in the period April 1997 to the second quarter of 1999 – the latest data available.
I do not have data on the number of companies which failed in the economy generally during the years in question as many of these would operate in the broader services sector which do not come into contact with the support agencies.
Job Losses due to Closures (IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland* and Shannon Development Client Companies) (1997-99)
|
Irish Owned |
Foreign Owned |
All Ownership |
||||||||||||||
|
Small |
Medium |
Large |
TotalAllSizes |
Small |
Medium |
Large |
TotalAllSizes |
Small |
Medium |
Large |
TotalAllSizes |
|||||
|
1997 |
No. of Establishments Closed |
317 |
8 |
0 |
325 |
38 |
11 |
1 |
50 |
355 |
19 |
1 |
375 |
|||
|
Employment |
1766 |
602 |
0 |
2368 |
477 |
898 |
316 |
1691 |
2243 |
1500 |
316 |
4059 |
||||
|
1998 |
No. of Establishments Closed |
231 |
5 |
0 |
236 |
41 |
5 |
2 |
48 |
272 |
10 |
2 |
284 |
|||
|
Employment |
1251 |
413 |
0 |
1664 |
372 |
492 |
1291 |
2155 |
1623 |
905 |
1291 |
3819 |
||||
|
1999 |
No. of Establishments Closed |
211 |
8 |
1 |
220 |
36 |
13 |
2 |
51 |
247 |
21 |
3 |
271 |
|||
|
Employment |
1472 |
656 |
297 |
2425 |
621 |
1428 |
690 |
2739 |
2093 |
2084 |
987 |
5164 |
