Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 6 Feb 2001

Vol. 529 No. 4

Written Answers. - Euro Changeover.

Derek McDowell

Ceist:

47 Mr. McDowell asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if her attention has been drawn to the results of a survey undertaken by ISME which showed that many small firms were failing to prepare for the arrival of the euro; her plans to intensify the euro information campaign; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27992/00]

Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Ms Harney)

I am satisfied that the necessary information has been and continues to be produced and disseminated through the comprehensive efforts of the Forfás EMU business awareness campaign since it was launched in December 1996.

With regard to the plans to intensify the EMU business awareness campaign, a comprehensive programme of activities is in place for this final year of the changeover which will include a major advertising campaign using television, radio, press and Internet advertising, commencing on a phased basis from the week beginning 5 February, new information material will be prepared and distributed to SMEs covering key preparation issues including cash changeover, accounting, software and other aspects as well as specific guidelines for retailers, production of a training pack for all retailers for the purpose of staff training; presentations on the relevant EMU planning issues for business at meetings, conferences and/or seminars of professional, trade and business organisations, particularly those that represent companies in the SME sector, exhibition stands at appropriate conferences, trade and business exhibitions that facilitate dissemination of campaign information, particularly to companies in the SME sector and articles/features in relevant publications, newsletters and journals of trade, business and professional organisations particularly those focused on companies in the SME sector.

In addition, the campaign will continue with its joint information initiative withRunning Your Business, the magazine of the Small Firms Association which is circulated to a dedicated list of 30,000 small firms; a LoCall help line will continue to assist businesses with their queries regarding changeover issues; and a national conference on the euro will be held in Loughrea, County Galway, on 19 February, which will highlight the changeover experiences of the SME firms involved in the Loughrea euro town project as they switched to euro based trading. The Loughrea project, run under the auspices of the Forfás EMU business awareness campaign, has identified many practical issues for SMEs in preparing for the euro.

The primary concern for the Forfás EMU business awareness campaign is to ensure that each business is made sufficiently aware of the need to have made the changeover by 31 December 2001 and that each company is encouraged to determine now the likely scale of the changeover for their particular business and prepare its plan accordingly.

It is clear that all Irish firms, irrespective of their size, must make the necessary preparations now to ensure that they will be able to operate in euro by year end.

With regard to the ISME survey referred to by the Deputy and, in considering the extent to which SME firms have prepared for the changeover, it is important to realise that for a considerable number of SMEs, particularly those focused predominately on the domestic market, there is little incentive to switch over to euro-based trading during the transitional period. In fact, it may not be in their commercial best interest to change over any earlier than 1 January 2002. To force such companies to implement systems that can accommodate both Irish pound and euro transactions during this transitional period may be unwarranted, unnecessary and needlessly expensive.

What is required is for SME firms to make a smooth transition from operating in one currency, the Irish pound, to another currency, the euro, by 1 January 2002. Obviously, to make such a transition efficiently and effectively requires planning and preparation well in advance of that date. Ultimately, however, the responsibility in effecting the changeover rests with each individual firm and the Government can only assist in providing the necessary information that will help them do this, a view that is shared by ISME and highlighted in the release accompanying their survey results.