Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 15 September 2021
68. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the extent to which he and his Department engage with local authorities regarding the development of digital hubs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43802/21]
View answerRegional enterprise development and sustainable local job creation is a key policy priority for this Government as set out in the Programme for Government: Our Shared Future. The Local Authorities are important partners in achieving that policy objective.
To ensure we are delivering on the potential of each region, my Department is currently overseeing the development of nine new Regional Enterprise Plans to 2024. Myself and Minister Robert Troy are overseeing the development of these Plans nationally. These are bottom-up plans, developed by regional stakeholders including the Local Authorities, along with the enterprise agencies, local enterprise offices, education and training institutes, and others in each region.
The Plans aim to identify growth opportunities, recognise vulnerabilities, and in response, strengthen the regional enterprise ecosystem to enable job creation in the regions. This includes the development of digital, enterprise / co-working hubs in the regions.
Under the Regional Enterprise Development Fund (REDF), the Border Enterprise Development Fund (BEDF), the Community Enterprise Centre Scheme, the Community Enterprise Initiative Scheme, the Campus Incubation Programme, and the Regional Accelerator Scheme, my Department through Enterprise Ireland has invested over €200 million in digital and enterprise centre infrastructures. These facilities provide affordable, digitally connected, physical workspace across the country, deliver training and soft assistance to their tenants and other companies in their locality and regional area, and offer co-working facilities.
The total number of projects part funded by Local Authorities in both the RDEF and BEDF calls (4 in total) is 38 out of a total 79 projects funded.
The Community Enterprise Centres have primarily been funded by Enterprise Ireland up to a level of 50% with the previous County Enterprise Boards providing up to 22.5%. In many Instances, there was additional funding provided by the Local Authority by way of cash or the provision of a suitable site for the building.
I chair a National Steering Committee for the development of a Quality Standards System and Framework for Ireland’s enterprise hub sector, a project being managed and co-ordinated by the National Association of Community Enterprise Centres, and which received funding from my Department under the Regional Enterprise Development Fund. The initiative, whose Steering Committee includes representation from the City and County Managers Association, will help strengthen Ireland's position as a world class destination in terms of remote working, startup ecosystem, community enterprise development, and innovation.
On the 29 July 2021, my Department announced a new €10 million Regional Enterprise Transition Scheme (RETS) administered by Enterprise Ireland to assist with the expansion of existing enterprise development projects under the Regional Enterprise Development Fund and Border Enterprise Development Fund. These funds will improve the capability and competitiveness of regional enterprises in the wake of Covid-19 and Brexit and those seeing to transition in the context of climate action and digitisation.
Finally, the Deputy may wish to note that the RETS also includes €500,000 in Feasibility Study funding to assist early-stage regional enterprise development projects which may include proposed enterprise/incubation centres. Local Authorities as project partners may apply for this funding.
