Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 October 2018
29. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the measures she will take to support balanced regional investment; and the supports in place for businesses wishing to locate in the midlands. [42667/18]
View answerSince becoming Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, I have made regional development my top priority. Indeed, enterprise development and job creation in the regions of Ireland is a key policy priority of this Government.
The Midlands has seen good progress under the Regional Action Plan for Jobs, with employment in the region increasing by 14% from Q1 2015 to Q2 2018. There are 15,300 more people in employment in the region from Q1 2015 to Q2 2018. Live Register numbers have fallen in all four Midland counties in the past 12 months. In 2017, both Enterprise Ireland and IDA reported job increases in the Midlands of 6% and 1% respectively. Through partnership between Enterprise Ireland and the Local Authorities, the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) have 819 client companies in the Midlands employing 4,214 people; and last year those companies added 387 new employees in total.
CSO figures show that the unemployment rate in the Midlands is currently at 9.7% (Q2 2018), which is higher than the State average and continued focus is therefore required on regional enterprise development and job creation in this region.
The Enterprise Agencies continue to work to contribute to employment and economic growth throughout all regions. Enterprise Ireland’s strategy for 2017-2020 aims to create a further 60,000 jobs, while sustaining existing ones, which will make an important contribution to jobs and economic growth across all regions.
The Local Enterprise Offices operating under the auspices of the Local Authorities and Enterprise Ireland in every county continue to play a vital role in providing advice and guidance, financial assistance and other supports to those wishing to start or grow their own businesses.
IDA meanwhile will continue to target a minimum increase in investment of 30% to 40% in each region outside Dublin to 2019. The IDA is involved in a number of initiatives to attract additional FDI to the Midlands, including a focused digital marketing campaign. This is designed to market the Midlands Region to potential investors by showcasing locations such as Westmeath and Longford. The IDA actively engages with its existing client base to support them in growing their business to retain jobs and expand their existing footprint in the region. The Agency also maintains regular engagement with the Chief Executives of Longford, Westmeath, Laois and Offaly County Councils to attract further investment to the region.
Regional development and growth of indigenous enterprise was one of my three main priorities for Budget 2019, announced last week. In order to support this, I announced the following allocations:
- an extra €5m to the 31 Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs);
- a doubling Retail Online Pilot Scheme to €1.25m to strengthen retailers online offering;
- a new round of €175m for Seed and Venture Capital Fund;
- €2.75m for SMEs Regional Innovation and Technology Clusters Programme; and
- a €300m Future Growth Loan Scheme which addresses the lack of availability of loans in the marketplace for loan-terms of longer than five to seven years
These initiatives will operate alongside existing supports for businesses and indigenous entrepreneurs.
I also announced an allocation of €10m to the next phase of the IDA’s Regional Property Programme. The IDA’s regional property programme is critical to encouraging more foreign direct investment into the regions. Project Ireland 2040 names the Border and Midlands regions as priority areas for this Programme, and so the funding will be used to start building advanced facilities a number of regional locations, including Athlone.
It is important to reiterate that any business can find out more information about the supports available to their business by visiting the SME Online Tool or they can contact their Local Enterprise Office which is the first stop shop for information, support and referral in relation to supports for business in every county.
The Midlands Action Plan for Jobs has been a key policy response for supporting employment growth in the Midlands, working with public and private stakeholders. In April of this year, I met with the Chairs of all the Regional Action Plan for Jobs committees and other regional stakeholders, to start a process to Refresh and Refocus all Regional Plans, including the Midlands Plan, to ensure their effectiveness, relevance and impact out to 2020, particularly in light of Brexit. This work is ongoing at present.
In December last year I announced an allocation of €30.5 million in funding to support enterprise capability in the regions, with 21 projects from all over the country receiving funding. This Regional Enterprise Development Fund (REDF) totalling €60 million is being rolled out by Enterprise Ireland over the next 4 years. The Fund supports the ambition, goals and implementation of the Regional Action Plans for Jobs.
The Irish Manufacturing Research CLG project located in Mullingar was one of the significant funding recipients under Stream 1 of the REDF, which will be an important support to manufacturing activity in the Midlands region. In addition, Longford is a partner in a Stream 2 project to develop a network of three Digital and Innovation Hubs with Leitrim and Cavan.
In April of this year I launched a second competitive call under the REDF , which will make available the remainder of the €60 million. The results of this competitive process will be announced by the end of the year.
Lastly, there have been a number of recent high-profile investments announced by overseas companies in the Midlands region. Earlier this year, Indian-owned Leetha Industries announced that it is to establish a manufacturing and supply operation called Red Seal Cups Ltd. in Ireland. This will create over 100 jobs in Longford over the next three years. The Avery Dennison Corporation is also planning a significant expansion of its Finesse Medical manufacturing facility in the county.
I was in Longford last Friday (October 12th) where I officially opened the first Center Parcs recruiting day. Center Parcs will invest in a €233m resort in Longford Forest on a 400-acre site which will create approximately 750 jobs during the construction phase, and is due to open in the summer of 2019. Once open, the resort expects to employ up to 1,000 people in permanent jobs.
Developments like these are a great vote of confidence in what the Midlands has to offer for investors. My priority is to continue to work with stakeholders collectively within the Midlands to build on the progress to date on implementation of the Regional Action Plan for Jobs over the period to 2020, and to focus on leveraging the key strengths of the region. My Department is also working closely with the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government in relation to the National Planning Framework and development of Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies, and with the Department of Rural and Community Development on roll out of the Action Plan for Rural Development.
