Robert Troy
Question:307. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation her views on a proposal by an organisation (details supplied) to mitigate a hard Brexit. [41666/19]
View answerTuesday, 15 October 2019
Questions (307, 308, 309)
Robert Troy
Question:308. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation her views on a proposal by an organisation (details supplied) to mitigate a hard Brexit. [41667/19]
View answerRobert Troy
Question:309. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation her views on a proposal by an organisation (details supplied) to mitigate a hard Brexit. [41668/19]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 307 to 309, inclusive, together.
As part of Budget 2020 I announced a range of targeted measures that can be effectively deployed to meet the specific requirements of individual firms that may experience liquidity or transformative investment challenges in a no-deal Brexit scenario. These measures will be rolled out as part of the initial €110m Brexit contingency fund that will be available to my Department as part of the Government's €650m Brexit contingency Fund announced by the Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform last week in Budget 2020. This funding and other measures are being deployed based on our ongoing engagement with the European Commission on the State aid framework and my Department continues to explore, through the Irish/EU State aid Technical Group, all opportunities within existing State aid rules.
Much has been achieved by this Group to date including the Brexit Loan Scheme, the Future Growth Loan Scheme, the expansion of the Rescue and Restructuring Scheme to include Temporary Restructuring Aid and the subsequent increase in state aid flexibilities in relation to these Schemes. Through the Working Group, approval was received, for example, to provide support to Carbery Food Ingredients towards financing a large diversification project to mitigate the impacts of Brexit and further options, through the Agriculture state aid Guidelines, are being developed to support large food companies. The work of this Group is ongoing.
Should issues arise that require an approach that does not fit within the existing State Aid rules, this will be raised as part of the Technical Working Group discussions. I have received assurances from Commissioner Vestager, Commissioner for Competition, that the Commission stands ready to act urgently in mitigation against the impacts on Brexit on Irish firms.
In relation to the potential for introducing an employment subsidy scheme, while this is primarily a matter for my Ministerial colleagues, in the Departments of Employment Affairs and Social Protection and Education and Skills, I know that the existing system of systematic short-time working arrangements remains in place and are being utilised by the Intreo offices countrywide.
Furthermore, a group comprising officials from those Departments and my own Department continue to meet and are examining policy options in this space in event of a hard Brexit and an early-warning coordination process has been established for firms experiencing difficulty. Intreo offices (under the auspices of Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection) stand ready to work with employers experiencing short term difficulties in all sectors, with the objective of keeping workers close to the labour market as viable firms adjust. In addition, there has been strong engagement between relevant Departments regarding responses for the tourism/hospitality and freight sectors.
The suite of additional supports for business announced in the Budget of up to €110 million for a combination of lending and repayable grants to be available for deployment in a No Deal scenario are all designed as targeted and temporary, supporting viable but vulnerable businesses and with built in assurances to safeguard the State’s investment. These supports will be critical particularly in the highly vulnerable border areas and in supporting exporters who are heavily exposed to the UK market in sectors such as construction, engineering and food.
The introduction of an enterprise stabilisation fund in 2009 required a significant change to State Aid rules, which was subject to the approval of all 28 Member States. In accordance with EU rules, it was also required that the fund be made available to all Member States. However, following a review of the approach in 2009 it was subsequently found that the greater benefits accrued to the larger EU economies.