Vol. 462 No. 8
237 Mr. E. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the number of projects refused in each of the county enterprise board areas of Cork south, Cork north, Cork west and Cork city; the number of jobs created in each area; the number of projects that started up after approval but failed; the total investment in each project; the number of posts, if any; and any other information relevant to the board. [5644/96]
The Deputy will appreciate that matters relating to project applications to a city or county enterprise board fall within the day-to-day responsibility of the enterprise board concerned and are not a matter in which I have any direct function.
It is not in any event possible to quantify the precise number of projects which have been refused by the four CEBs in the city and county of Cork since their establishment. Very many applications are received by each board, some of which are considered eligible for support by CEB's in general and others of which are refused because the project is not considered by the board in question to be worthwhile or viable proposal. According to figures supplied by each of the four Cork boards, the number of jobs created in CEB-assisted enterprises in the city and county from the date of establishment of the CEBs to the end of December 1995 was as follows; Cork city EB 110 jobs (full-time), Cork north CEB 103 (full-time), south Cork EB 200 (full-time) and Cork west CEB 134 (full-time) and nine (part-time).
Of the 450-plus projects approved by the four Cork CEBs to date and subsequently established, figures returned by the boards concerned indicate that a very small number — nine — have failed. This is hopefully a reflection of the quality of the projects coming before the boards and the thoroughness with which the evaluation committees and the members of the Cork boards have carried out their functions. It has to be said, however, that it is very early days to be assessing the long-term sustainability of these projects.
