Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 29 November 2016
756. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the funding that has been provided to County Meath over the three years 2014 to 2016 by project name, location and funding amount in tabular form. [37273/16]
View answer757. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the applications submitted for funding for projects from Meath County Council in each of the years 2014 to 2016, in tabular form; if the applications where successful; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37289/16]
View answer758. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the funding for projects in 2017 in County Meath to be funded by her Department by project name, location and funding amount, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37305/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 756 to 758, inclusive, together.
My Department is focused on ensuring that the effects of economic recovery are felt throughout all regions of the country. While employment has increased in all our regions, it has not been as fast in some. The Government’s ultimate target is to achieve sustainable full employment, and to assist in achieving this objective, my Department’s agencies are ensuring that targeted supports for enterprise and job creation are provided throughout all regions. The Action Plan for Jobs for the Mid-East region, which includes Meath, sets out a comprehensive plan to build on the strengths of the region to develop its full potential for enterprise and jobs growth.
Details of funding for projects in County Meath in 2014, 2015 and 2016 provided by the agencies of my Department are set out in the following tables where available. The levels of funding to be provided for projects in 2017 have not yet been determined.
IDA Ireland
IDA Ireland continues to work towards achieving job creation and investment targets set out in its strategy ‘Winning Foreign Direct Investment 2015-2019’, and is particularly focusing on job creation outside Dublin. In 2016, the following project announcements were made by IDA client companies in Meath:
|
Project Name |
Location |
Funding Amount |
Other relevant information |
|
Shire |
Piercetown Co Meath |
Confidential |
Shire will create a new, state of the art biologics manufacturing campus, which it expects will lead to the creation of approximately 400 permanent jobs on a 120 acre site. |
|
|
Clonee, Co Meath |
Confidential |
Facebook announced the construction of a data centre. The facility will become part of the infrastructure that enables billions of people to connect with the people and things they care about on Facebook and across its family of apps and services. |
Details of grant payments to IDA client companies in 2016 are not yet available. In 2015 grant payments totalling €300,000 were made to IDA Ireland client companies located in Co Meath. There were no grant payments to IDA clients in Meath in 2014.
Enterprise Ireland
Enterprise Ireland works in partnership with Irish enterprises to help them start, grow, innovate and win export sales in global markets, thus supporting sustainable economic growth, regional development and secure employment. Details of the funding amounts provided by Enterprise Ireland for projects in Co. Meath are set out in the following tables. Data for funding provided by Enterprise Ireland in 2016 is not available at present.
|
Year |
Location |
Funding Amount |
|
2014 |
Meath |
€1,159,192.49 |
|
Year |
Location |
Funding Amount |
|
2015 |
Meath |
€2,276,891.58 |
Local Enterprise Offices
Capital funding from my Department for Local Enterprise Development is allocated to the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) through the Centre of Excellence in Enterprise Ireland. This funding is allocated among the LEOs to support clients through the provision of grants (Measure 1) and soft supports (Measure 2), such as training and mentoring, and used to fund the Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) programme. Details of the total payments made by LEO Meath in 2014 and 2015 are set out in Table 1. Details of total payments made in 2016 are not available.
Table 1: Total Payments by LEO Meath in 2014 and 2015
|
Meath LEO |
Total Payments |
|
2014 |
€143,098 |
|
2015 |
€166,085 |
The LEOs use their Measure 1 allocations to provide feasibility, priming and business development grants to their clients. Details of the individual grants allocated in 2014, 2015 and 2016 are set out below.
PQ 37289/16 refers
LEO Meath is effectively a Unit of Meath County Council and was involved in two collaborative project applications with other LEOs to the LEO Competitive Fund. The projects were not approved for funding under the call.
PQ 37305/16 refers
A total of €22.5m in Capital funding has been allocated to my Department for Local Enterprise Development in 2017. The allocations to individual LEOs will be calculated next year in line with an agreed methodology.
Credit Guarantee Scheme
The SME Credit Guarantee Scheme is a government initiative that was set up to encourage additional lending to commercially viable SMEs which, under normal lending criteria, are unable to obtain new or additional facilities from their bank. The total amount of loans sanctioned under the Credit Guarantee Scheme in 2014, 2015 and 2016 are set out in the following table.
|
Year |
Location |
Funding Amount |
|
2016 |
Meath |
€280,000 |
|
2015 |
Meath |
€450,000 |
|
2014 |
Meath |
€95,000 |
Microfinance Ireland
Microfinance Ireland provides small loans through the Government’s Microenterprise Loan Fund to help to start up a small business or expand an existing business. The total applications received and approved in 2014, 2015 and 2016 are set out in the following tables.
2016
|
Applications Received |
Amount |
Applications Approved |
Amount |
|
33 |
€490k |
11 |
€141k |
2015
|
Applications Received |
Amount |
Applications Approved |
Amount |
|
39 |
€572k |
18 |
€220k |
2014
|
Applications Received |
Amount |
Applications Approved |
Amount |
|
28 |
€429k |
13 |
€187k |
Other Relevant Information
With regard to applications received from Meath County Council for funding by my Department and its agencies, LEO Meath is effectively a Unit of Meath County Council and was involved in two collaborative project applications with other LEOs to the LEO Competitive Fund. The projects were not approved for funding under the call.
