Louise O'Reilly
Question:122. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will meet with an association (details supplied) regarding the crisis facing the sector. [25278/20]
View answerTuesday, 22 September 2020
Questions (122)
Written answers
My Department and its agencies have been focussed on coming up with solutions to help businesses overcome the challenges presented by the unprecedented difficulties caused by COVID-19. I am acutely aware of the issues facing the events sectors in Ireland. Officials in my Department, Ministers of State in my Department and I are in ongoing contact with representative bodies. In that context I welcome contact with all bodies regarding their challenges and suggestions.
I recognise that the events and exhibition sector is a critical part of the ecosystem for business and commerce in the country. I am acutely aware of the difficulties the sector has faced in recent months due to the impact of social distancing requirements.
I am pleased the Government's COVID-19 published last week, 'Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021: Plan for Living with COVID-19' specifically deals with this category of organised events and we will continue to work with the sector to progress the development of agreed protocols to enable the hosting of events in the near future.
Details of the wide range of supports available are available on my Department’s website at https://dbei.gov.ie/en/What-We-Do/Supports-for-SMEs/COVID-19-supports/.
In the wider context of the Government’s Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021: Plan for Living with COVID-19, the operation and reopening of Ireland will be guided by the need to manage risk and repairing the damage that COVID-19 has inflicted on society, and the implementation of appropriate measures to do so across business and society as the situation evolves.