Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 September 2023
384. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if she will continue to pursue pro-enterprise and pro-competitive policies to ensure the survival of the tourism SMEs in the tourism budget. [39528/23]
View answerResponsibility for the tourism budget lies with the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media.
My Department continues to pursue pro-enterprise and pro-competitive policies for all Irish enterprise. Published in December 2022, the White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030 sets out Ireland`s industrial policy for the medium- to long-term, building on Ireland`s economic strengths of an open economy with strong trade and foreign direct investment, a vibrant innovation hub, and a resilient labour market. The White Paper sets out Ireland`s industrial policy to realise the vision of a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable enterprise growth model for Ireland into the future, while remaining true to what works well for enterprise at present.
Ireland’s current competitiveness position is quite strong, with the Institute for Management Development ranking Ireland as the 11th most competitive economy in the world (out of 63 economies) in 2022. However, the economy has faced a series of recent challenges arising from disruptions such as COVID-19 and the economic impacts of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, including rising energy prices. The Government has been proactive in providing assistance to firms. In September 2022, a package to help businesses with escalating energy costs was announced as part of Budget 2023. The €1.25 billion Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme, which supports qualifying businesses with up to 40% of the increase in electricity or gas bills - when compared to last year - up to a maximum of €10,000 per month.
The Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme will make up to €500 million in low-cost investment loans of up to 10 years available to SMEs, with no collateral required for loans up to €500,000. A minimum of 30% of the lending volume will be targeted towards Environmental Sustainability purposes. The reduced rate of VAT on gas and electricity from 13.5% to 9% has also been extended until 31 October 2023.
A key pillar of the White Paper is enabling locally trading sectors to thrive. This will see an expanded role for Local Enterprise Offices which will continue to enhance their advisory services for locally trading firms, helping them to improve productivity through digitalisation and reducing energy and carbon emissions. Training, consultancy, and mentoring services will be made available to more locally trading business with over 10 and up to 50 employees.
During 2023, my Department undertook the development of the first of consecutive two-year Implementation Plans of cross-Government activity to progress the White Paper commitments. This first Implementation Plan was published in May of 2023 and identifies a portfolio of 40 key initiatives and projects across the seven priority objectives. The initiatives and projects listed have been selected as reflective of the efforts underway to align enterprise policy interventions with the vision and ambition set out in the White Paper.
Regarding locally traded enterprise it will seek to:
• Facilitate our Locally Trading Sectors to Navigate the Twin Transition
• Support Small Firms in Energy Cost Reduction and Decarbonisation Investments
• Assist Locally Traded Sectors in Increasing Digital Intensity
• Enable Locally Traded Sectors to Capture e-Commerce opportunities through Digitalisation
• Boost Social Enterprise Contributions to the Irish Economy and Society.
