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Departmental Expenditure

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 21 November 2013

Thursday, 21 November 2013

Questions (92)

Pearse Doherty

Question:

92. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the impact that his departmental budget for 2014 will have on the budgets of the Industrial Development Agency, Enterprise Ireland, Science Foundation Ireland, InterTrade Ireland, county enterprise boards and local enterprise offices. [49847/13]

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Written answers

2014 Allocations

The Exchequer DJEI capital allocation for 2014 is €442m, which, it is expected, together with both capital carryover and reinvestment of income generated by agencies, will maintain IDA, EI, SFI, ITI and CEB allocations broadly in line with 2013 expenditure.

The issue of capital carryover will be decided in the context of the Revised Estimates Volume that will be conducted during November and early December. Individual allocations across Agencies will be presented in early December as part of the Revised Estimates Volume.

The Department's current expenditure ceiling for 2014 has been set by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform at €339m. This includes the total Pay, Pensions and Non-Pay expenditure provisions for the Department, its offices and its agencies for next year. The distribution of this current expenditure provision will also be presented in early December as part of the Revised Estimates Volume.

Budget 2014 Impact

Budget 2014 will enable the delivery by these agencies of a range of enterprise and research and innovation supports, which are crucial in achieving a return to economic growth through providing access to finance and growing innovation in Ireland.

The measures this will deliver include:

- Delivery of DJEI measures under Action Plan for Jobs 2014, to be announced early next year;

- Delivery, by IDA Ireland, on its job creation targets as set out in IDA’s “Horizon 2020” Strategy, which covers the 5 year period 2010-2014. The targets that have been set in Horizon 2020 are:

- 105,000 new jobs (62,000 in IDA supported companies and a further 43,000 indirect).

- 640 Investments.

- 50% of investments located outside Dublin and Cork.

- 20% of greenfield investments originating from emerging markets by 2014.

- Annual client spend of €1.7bn in R, D&I by 2014;

- Continued supports, through EI and SFI to drive the innovation performance of indigenous industry and commercialisation of research;

- Enterprise Ireland will target some 12,000 new jobs and generate €17.5billion in exports. The Agency will also support 95 new High Potential Start-Up companies with commitments to create e 2,100 new jobs;

- Continued investment by EI in mentoring, management development and lean programmes, to increase business efficiency and competitiveness, aiding sustainability and protecting jobs. EI will also provide export-related supports to companies that want to scale and develop new markets;

- Provision of ongoing support, through Enterprise Ireland, for new R&D investment and activity in companies and for collaborative projects between companies and Irish third level institutions;

- Participation by hundreds of companies in IDA and EI-funded trade events and missions throughout 2014;

- 2-3 new, large, internationally visible SFI-funded research centres, in sectors of national strategic importance. SFI will look to invest €10m - €15m in these centres in 2014 in collaborations with industry;

- Continued support to over 20 world-class SFI research centres and to a cohort of 3,000 researchers to maintain and drive Ireland’s job creation strategy;

- A national level “Health Innovation Hub”, to drive collaboration between the health system and commercial enterprises leading to the development and commercialisation of new healthcare technologies, products, services and

- start-ups emerging from within the health system and/or firms.” This will deliver a significant positive benefit for both the life-sciences and ICT sectors of industry, both of which are of strategic importance to Ireland in terms of jobs and exports, representing 50,000 jobs and exports of €51 billion;

- Provision, by InterTrade Ireland, of ongoing all-island programmes and activities designed to raise awareness among SMEs of the value of engaging in cross-border trade;

- An additional €3.5million in supports for start-ups and growing businesses through the CEBs/ Local Enterprise Offices. The CEB’s Capital allocation is utilised in direct grant disbursement to eligible micro-enterprises and through the provision of a range of “soft supports” – training, mentoring and business advice services to support start-ups and developing businesses. The CEBs will continue to use their capital funding to promote business start-ups and to develop existing businesses to support job retention and creation in line with Government policy on maximising job creation through appropriate use of available Exchequer funding. It is envisaged that some of the additional monies will be used for the delivery of a targeted Programme to increase the level of Youth Entrepreneurship and also to establish a Programme of targeted supports to the micro enterprise sector with a specific sectoral and / or geographical perspective.

Budget 2014 will also enable the continued delivery of almost €2.5billion in new, non-bank credit schemes, targeted at the full range of businesses from micro-enterprises through SMEs to mid-sized Irish exporting businesses and high-growth technology firms:

- €850 million through three SME funds from the National Pensions Reserve Fund

- €225 million development capital scheme

- €700 million Seed and Venture Capital Scheme 2013-2018

- €10 million international start-up fund

- €120 million second call under Innovation Fund Ireland

- €90 million micro-finance scheme

- €450 million credit guarantee scheme

I issued a comprehensive Press Release on the impact of the Budget on 15 October and this is available on my Department’s website at the link below: http://www.enterprise.gov.ie/en/News/2013/October/Over-48-000-new-jobs-to-be-supported-in-2014-through-DJEI-Budget-–-Minister-Bruton.html

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