Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 February 2019
129. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the timeline of the interaction between the IDA and a company (details supplied) that has announced a relocation from the Connemara Gaeltacht to Galway city; when the IDA informed Údarás na Gaeltachta of this interaction; the details of all inducements offered by the IDA to get the company to relocate; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7532/19]
View answerFor the avoidance of any doubt, I would like to emphasise that interactions between the IDA and existing or prospective FDI clients are highly commercially sensitive operational matters for the Agency and for its clients.
Having said that, I am aware that a client of Údarás na Gaeltachta - HID Global Ireland Teo. - has recently announced its decision to expand its presence in Ireland and to establish its new European Centre of Excellence in Galway City. In addition, the company intends to consolidate its operations and transfer its existing workforce from An Tulaí, Baile na hAbhann to a larger new facility in the city on a phased basis. The company has stated that there will be no job losses involved and that all of the employees currently based in Baile na hAbhann will be able to transfer to the company's new facility in Galway City. HID Global are not in receipt of any funding from IDA Ireland in respect of their decision to establish a European Centre of Excellence and to transfer manufacturing to Galway City.
I understand that Údarás na Gaeltachta, as part of its ongoing enterprise development strategy, has begun the task of seeking alternative clients for the facility in An Tulaí and that the organisation is committed to further developing Páirc Ghnó na Tulaí as a location for employment.
IDA Ireland has a strong focus on regional development with 58% of all jobs outside Dublin at the end of 2018 and in that regard, Galway is an especially strong performer in terms of FDI. There are 81 IDA client companies across the county employing 19,696 people, representing an increase of almost 8% over the previous year. Likewise, employment figures for 2018, published by an tÚdarás in recent days, show that almost 3,000 people were employed in Údarás client companies in the Galway Gaeltacht at year end - which represented the highest employment figures since 2000. This, along with the large increase in Údarás na Gaeltachta’s capital budget this year, is a clear demonstration of the Government’s commitment to securing and nurturing employment in our Gaeltacht regions.
