Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 May 2019
86. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the status of the regional enterprise plans; the benefits for counties Longford and Westmeath; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20531/19]
View answerDuring February and March this year, I launched nine new Regional Enterprise Plans to 2020, which build on the very strong progress made on employment creation under the Regional Action Plan for Jobs 2015-2017 and take into account today’s new and emerging opportunities and challenges, including Brexit. I am pleased to say that implementation has commenced in all regions.
I launched the new Midlands Regional Enterprise Plan on the 6th February last in Mountmellick, Co. Laois.
Shaped from the ‘bottom-up’ by regional stakeholders, and overseen by my Department, the new Regional Enterprise Plans to 2020 complement national level policies and programmes emanating from the ‘top-down’ and, there is strong alignment with Ireland’s national enterprise policy, Enterprise 2025 Renewed and the Future Jobs Ireland initiative.
The principle behind the Regional Enterprise Plans is collaboration between regional stakeholders on initiatives that can help to realise the region’s enterprise development potential. These stakeholders include: the Local Authorities, the LEOs, the enterprise agencies, the Regional Skills Forum, tourism bodies, private sector ‘enterprise champions’, and others.
The Midlands Plan sets out seven Strategic Objectives for enterprise growth that span areas such as: addressing the challenges posed by the transition to a low carbon economy; exploiting big data opportunities; building on strengths in advanced manufacturing; place-making and regional marketing; tourism; food; and skills development. Each of the seven objectives involves a focus on counties Longford and Westmeath as part of the Midlands region.
The Strategic Objectives and actions in the Midlands Plan are set out alongside, and add value to, the core activities of the enterprise agencies of my Department, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland and the LEOs in Longford and Westmeath and the wider region.
The focus for Co. Longford and Co. Westmeath and the Midlands over the period to 2020 under the new Regional Enterprise Plan will be to maintain an emphasis on sustainable job creation, aiming to out-perform the rate of employment growth achieved since 2015 to date and reduce and maintain unemployment in the region to within one percentage point of the national average.
The Midlands Regional Enterprise Plan to 2020 is strongly aligned with and supports the work of the Midlands Regional Transition Team formed by Offaly County Council following the announcement by Bord Na Móna of strand one of its "Brown to Green" strategy, by encouraging collaboration to develop employment opportunities in the region and in the context of the transition to a low carbon economy as it affects the peat sector in the Midlands.
Finally, it is important to note that the Government has put several funding streams in place to support regional development. They include my Department’s Regional Enterprise Development Fund, securing funding of over €3.4 million across four projects in the Midlands. Two of these projects are of direct relevance to Longford and Westmeath. The Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR) facility located in Mullingar was awarded over €2.1 million and will support significant growth and job creation in the manufacturing sector. Co. Longford is involved in a collaborative initiative which received over €1.2 million to develop a network of three Digital and Innovation Hubs one of which will be located in Co. Longford.
Guided by this new Regional Enterprise Plan, and the various funding streams available, Co. Longford and Co. Westmeath and the broader Midlands region are well positioned to realise their enterprise development potential.
