Vol. 511 No. 6
50 Mr. Naughten asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the plans, if any, she has to introduce new incentives to encourage industry to locate outside the main urban centres; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24842/99]
79 Mr. B. O'Keeffe asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the plans, if any, the Government has to reduce the level of grant aid available to foreign investment locating in the eastern region. [22205/99]
90 Mr. Naughten asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if the investment bias to encourage new industry to locate outside the main urban centres has been successful; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24843/99]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 50, 79 and 90 together.
The last five years have been very successful with regard to the attraction of overseas investment. Total full-time employment in overseas owned manufacturing and internationally traded services companies has risen from just over 100,000 in 1993 to almost 139,000 by 1998, a rise of 39 per cent.
The Government is committed to ensuring the most equitable regional distribution of job opportunities. The development agencies are now strongly focused on achieving this aim and resources are being deployed to reflect this new focus. Much of this investment has come from very large projects and these tend to strongly favour urban locations. Over the past year, IDA Ireland has restructured its regional offices in order to intensify the emphasis on securing sustainable growth and employment in the regions. The agency aims, over the period 2000-2, to deliver over 50 per cent of jobs created from new greenfield projects to the Objective One region which compares to 25 per cent at present.
In addition, the new EU State aids regime that will operate from 1 January next will favour new investment into the regions. Ireland will be divided into two basic regions – an Objective One region, consisting of the Border, midland and west regions and an Objective One in transition region, which will consist of the rest of the country. This will mean that the incentives the development agencies will be able to offer in the Objective One region will be substantially greater than those which they will be able to offer in the rest of the country.
The recently announced national development plan will also help to underpin IDA Ireland's regional strategy since it will provide the infrastructure necessary for the attraction of overseas investment currently lacking outside the major urban centres.
Will the Tánaiste comment on the alleged restructuring of the IDA, which involved the downgrading of the midland office of the IDA to a sub-office of the western region? What has the Tánaiste or the IDA done to encourage new industry to locate in the towns of Longford and Roscommon and the Minister of State's town, Ballinasloe, which has not seen a new industry for 25 years? Would the Tánaiste agree that the new industries will be located in the new growth centres in the BMW region and counties like Longford and Roscommon will be bypassed, as has already been the case with the extensions to the gas and telecommunications networks?
The IDA's operation has been radically restructured.
Downgraded.
No, it has not been. First, the job of IDA Ireland is to sell Ireland abroad and the main focus of its work is in overseas markets, seeking to attract foreign investors to establish facilities in Ireland or to expand existing facilities. The new policy, since this Government took office, is to encourage those companies to opt for smaller projects in regional locations. It is not always possible to get very large job projects for smaller regional locations.
Almost 80 per cent of the new jobs announced since the Government took office have been for outside the Dublin area. Recently IDA Ireland took its executives to see all of the facilities not just in the Objective One region but in places in Kerry, Cork and many other locations which we want to promote. I believe the new policy will be successful. With regard to specific counties, I have had a number of meetings with companies. As the Deputy will probably be aware, we announced recently a new food project for Longford involving an indigenous company. Longford and Roscommon are certainly on the list of priorities.
Ballinasloe, which is not only the Minister of State, Deputy Treacy's home town but is also my home town – I was only born in one place – remains top of my priority list. I have not given up that we will find that the new industrial park, Creath, which has recently been completed, will act as a major attraction. In some of these areas there must be attractive facilities if one is to get projects. People will not come to greenfield sites unless there are facilities.
Tánaiste, your time has concluded.
The infrastructural plans envisaged by the national development plan, together with the new policy focus and the targets being given to IDA Ireland, will help to address some of the difficulties which have been experienced in areas outside the main cities.
Written Answers follow Adjournment Debate.
