Fiona O'Loughlin
Question:19. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the action he is taking to encourage returning Irish emigrants. [9681/19]
View answerWednesday, 27 February 2019
Questions (19)
Written answers
This Government is committed to making it as easy as possible for Irish emigrants to return to live and work in Ireland. Reducing barriers to returning emigrants has important implications for national competitiveness; in a growing Irish economy facilitating the return of skills will be of importance in sustaining economic growth.
In my capacity as Minister of State for the Diaspora, I chair the Inter-Departmental Committee on the Irish Abroad which works to ensure that Government works in a joined up way to realise the objectives of Ireland’s Diaspora Policy, including addressing issues affecting the Irish abroad and those seeking to return.
On foot of the work by the Inter-Departmental Committee on the Irish Abroad, the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade commissioned an independent economic report on difficulties experienced by Irish people returning home. Following a competitive tendering process, this report was completed by economic consultants Indecon in February 2018, considered by Government, and was published on the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website.
Since the publication of the Indecon Economic Report on Addressing Challenges Faced by Returning Irish Emigrants, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has undertaken a number of steps, in conjunction with other Government Departments and State Agencies, to address the thirty recommendations made in the report. Most recently, I wrote to relevant Ministers in December 2018 seeking a further update on progress on their individual areas of responsibility.
Currently, nineteen of the total thirty recommendations have been, or are in the process of being addressed. Departments are aware of further action to be taken in respect of 6 recommendations. The remaining recommendations are being partially implemented, or are being considered as part of a wider issue rather than in the context of the recommendation alone.
All responses made in respect of these recommendations will inform a further Memorandum to Government on the progress made since the publication of the Indecon Report.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has already implemented several of the Indecon Report’s recommendations in relation to information provision. An enhanced ‘Returning to Ireland’ section containing more information and advice for returning emigrants has been developed for our dedicated diaspora website, the Global Irish Hub. Officials are working closely with the Citizen’s Information Board to ensure that returning emigrants have the best information and advice possible to assist them in making the return back to Ireland.
In addition, following on from a successful pilot programme in 2018, I recently launched the second year of the Back for Business programme - a mentoring programme designed to assist returning emigrants to set up business in Ireland. The programme works to assist returning emigrant entrepreneurs by addressing the challenges that all early stage entrepreneurs face, with a particular focus on the additional barriers and challenges faced by those who have been out of the country for some time. The programme is based on a model of mentor support, and will run from February to July 2019.
Question No. 20 answered with Question No. 9.