Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 July 2020
54. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of applications for the online trading voucher received and processed from January 2020 to date by the LEO Wicklow; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13957/20]
View answer55. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of applications received and processed for the online trading voucher from January to December 2019 by the LEO Wicklow; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13958/20]
View answer56. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if attendance at a seminar is a mandatory requirement as part of the criteria for businesses applying for the online trading voucher; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13959/20]
View answer57. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment when funding will be made available to the LEO Wicklow to allow it to process the high volume of applications received recently from businesses for the online trading voucher; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13960/20]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 54 to 57, inclusive, together.
The Trading Online Voucher Scheme is managed by my Department and delivered nationwide in partnership with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, the Department of Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht, Enterprise Ireland, the 31 Local Enterprise Offices and Údarás na Gaeltachta. The Scheme offers skills training, mentoring and a grant of up to €2,500 to help small and micro-businesses to develop their ecommerce capability.
It is a requirement of the Scheme that prospective applicants participate in an information session, which is currently delivered by way of webinar. The content of the information session includes:
- What the Trading Online Voucher can be used for, and how the Scheme Works;
- The opportunities of ecommerce;
- Tools for helping a business participate in ecommerce; and
- The do’s and do nots of an online ecommerce presence.
The information session also provides prospective applicants with an opportunity to network and learn from the experience of their peers.
In response to Covid-19, funding for the Scheme in 2020 was increased from €2.3m to €19.8m, and new flexibilities were introduced including reducing the requirement for co-funding from 50% to 10% and allowing businesses to apply for a second voucher of up to €2,500 where they have successfully utilised their first one.
During 2019 the Wicklow LEO processed and approved 39 applications for vouchers to a value of €83,523.
In the period 1 January to 1 July 2020 the Wicklow LEO processed and approved 133 applications for vouchers to a value of €310,658.
On 1 July 2020 my Department increased the voucher allocation to the Wicklow LEO from 170 to 262 vouchers or in value terms from €408,000 to €628,800 (based on an average voucher value of €2,400).
