Vol. 532 No. 1
88 Mr. Deenihan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures she is putting in place to encourage industry to locate in unemployment blackspots outside Objective One areas; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6650/01]
The Government is committed to ensuring the most equitable regional distribution of job opportunities and the industrial development agencies will continue to encourage more industry to locate to the regions, including non-Objective One areas. IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and Shannon Development in the mid-west, have developed regional strategies with a view to achieving balanced regional economic development over the period of the national development plan 2000-06.
IDA Ireland has, in conjunction with my Department, set targets for the attraction of a greater number of inward investment projects to regional locations, while Enterprise Ireland has identified significant potential for mobility in terms of expansions among Irish enterprise over the past 12 months. In addition to Enterprise Ireland clients, a sizeable number of large financial and commercial institutions are actively considering operations outside Dublin for their expansion activities.
From a regional development perspective, the internationally traded services – ITS – sector has potential to generate new economic activity in peripheral areas with limited infrastructure. However, this will depend on the availability of high bandwidth telecommunications at competitive costs. Much of the infrastructural support necessary to create an environment where ITS businesses can flourish will be provided through the national development plan.
The attraction or re-location of industry to regional locations, particularly where unemployment blackspots exist, often depends on the availability of skilled workers in the area and on matching the skills of the local people to the needs of the industry concerned. An example of how the skills issue is being addressed is the Fast Track to IT – FIT – initiative, an industry led initiative supported by the Government in the Dublin area at present. This initiative brings together local community organisations, IT companies, State agencies and the unemployed in order to help meet the labour shortages in the IT industry.
I am confident that the co-ordinated efforts by the development agencies will lead to increased job opportunities in areas of high unemployment.
