Vol. 1034 No. 2
75. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will report on the work to improve processing time of work permits; the work being done to improve the efficiency of the work permit system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9260/23]
Will the Minister outline the current state of play in respect of the processing of work permits? At one stage, the time from application to getting a permit was approximately 20 weeks, although there has been a dramatic improvement in that. I ask the Minister to outline what work has been done to make it an efficient system.
I thank the Deputy. The number of employment permit applications submitted to my Department increased significantly from 18,977 in 2019 to 16,449 in 2020, then to 27,719 in 2021 and to just over 35,606 last year, which resulted in a backlog in applications. The Department developed an action plan to reduce this backlog and the employment permit processing timelines. Following the successful implementation of the plan, the employment permits unit has reduced the number of applicants awaiting processing from approximately 11,000 in January last year to just over 900 on 20 February this year.
Despite further strong demand, the Department received almost 36,000 employment permit applications in 2022. Processing times have fallen from 21 weeks to four to seven business days. The Department plans to maintain processing times for all applications at this level - in other words, a person can get it done in a week - on the assumption that estimated demand remains at current levels for this year. The employment permits unit has also introduced a range of measures to assist applicants in their applications. User guides and dedicated checklists have been developed, as well as a series of video guides produced in conjunction with Fáilte Ireland that detail the steps involved in completing and submitting an employment permit application.
From 16 January of this year, the Department commenced screening all general employment permit applications across a small number of key mandatory criteria to ensure compliance with the requirements of this permit type. Should the application fail to provide the required valid information, it will be returned with a comprehensive explanation and a full refund. This new process will provide early notification of failed applications while also ensuring that valid applications are processed in a speedy and efficient manner.
From October of last year, the Department introduced a new system to refund fees electronically directly through credit or debit cards used to pay for the application. This has resulted in refunds being made within days as opposed to the multiple weeks this process would have previously taken. In addition, the Department has recently appointed IT systems specialists to undertake the design and implementation of a new online employment permits system with the aim of delivering further efficiencies and an improved customer experience.
An efficient and responsive employment permit system is a critical component to ensure that talent is attracted to Ireland from non-EEA countries. I am committed to improving the efficiency of administrative processes and making services more customer friendly to the benefit of both employers and potential employees.
It is very much welcome that the time period has improved dramatically. I thank the Minister and the Department officials for the work they have done in assisting that improvement. Getting a work permit is one issue and then there is the issue of visas. I understand an interdepartmental committee was set up between the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Department of Justice in December. What progress has been made in respect of co-ordinating the work permit applications and visa applications? This is a difficult issue as people can wait for up to 20 weeks for a visa. That process needs to be expedited.
Another issue arises with regard to organisations that require people to get clearance, for instance, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland and the Medical Council. The whole procedure for processing those applications needs to be expedited, even in cases where people have work permits.
As I outlined, the Department has done an extraordinary job in effectively changing, modernising and improving the efficiency of the work permit system. I pay tribute to my predecessor and the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary, who is also involved in that discussion.
This time last year, this was a huge issue for many businesses. It is no longer an issue from a delay perspective. There are still issues, though, that need further consideration, one of which the Deputy spoke about. We effectively have an application system whereby a work permit can be obtained for a person but a visa must also be obtained to bring that person here. Those two systems operate independently of each other. The visa application could take considerably longer, so even if a person gets his or her work permit within a working week, that is no good if we cannot bring the person in. My Department and the Department of Justice are now talking about how we can streamline a single application system that would involve a visa and work permit. That is not a straightforward process legally, however. It involves two separate Departments and security checks and so on but we are working on that. I do not expect significant progress on that until probably next year.
Can the Minister not set a timeline for the Departments to work out a solution to this problem? A big complaint I hear, for instance, is that medical practitioners who are going to New Zealand or Australia can get a visa and work permit sorted in a week, whereas we still have a glitch in our system whereby a person can get a work permit but cannot get a visa. I encourage the Minister to engage with the Medical Council and An Bord Altranais. There is a big complaint about the timeline for getting people registered who are qualified in other jurisdictions and need to be approved here. That needs to be sorted.
Before the Minister responds, I call Deputy Stanton.
The Department website identifies intracompany transfer employment permits as being invaluable and very important in bringing highly skilled people and personnel into the country. However, spouses, partners and dependants of intracompany transfer employment permit applicants are not eligible for a dependent, partner or spouse employment permit and must apply for a separate employment permit in their own right. Large companies tell me this is acting as a deterrent to people with high skills coming into Ireland and they would like that changed as it pertains to the critical skills employment permit. Will the Minister commit to examining this matter in the forthcoming legislation on employment permits with a view to making the change to which I am alluding?
Yes is the straight answer but I will come back to Deputy Stanton on the detail of that. My understanding was that we had made progress in facilitating spouses whose partners have a work permit to come and work here. I will come back to the Deputy with the detail of that because certainly the intention is to make some progress in that area.
With regard to the Medical Council, I am happy to have a meeting either with Deputy Colm Burke or independently regarding some of those issues. From an enterprise perspective, but also from a healthcare perspective, we are reliant on bringing in skills from other parts of the world. That has to happen quickly and efficiently in many cases, whether it is for nursing home care or State-run bodies such as hospitals and so on. If there is an unnecessary blockage in terms of the timeline, we can keep working on trying to address that. I can also speak to the Minister for Health on it if that is helpful.
76. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of inquiries made in respect of the IDA Ireland site in Ballyadam, Carrigtwohill, County Cork, in 2021, 2022 and to date in 2023; the reason the site is not being developed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9018/23]
The Minister will be very aware of the IDA Ireland site in Ballyadam in Carrigtwohill, which is known as the former Amgen site. It has been lying idle now for the last 17 years.
It is probably one of the best resourced and serviced sites in the country, with a motorway on one side, a rail line on the other, and Cork Airport, the Port of Cork, plenty of third level institutions, employment and so on nearby. It has been lying idle for 17 years. Why is it not being developed? How many site visits have there been in the past while?
I know the site well. I drive past it regularly. It has extraordinary potential. It is known locally as the Amgen site because there was an expectation that there would be a significant development there quite some time ago now. However, the site still has significant potential.
The availability of quality business parks and strategic sites, coupled with advance building solutions, is a critical component of the regional value proposition and winning of investments into the regions, particularly outside of Dublin. The 56 ha site in Ballyadam, Carrigtwohill, is part of the IDA's overall strategic land portfolio in Cork and is available to support FDI clients.
The site was historically designated as a strategic site for development of a large-scale, stand-alone industrial enterprise and was reserved for this purpose in the previous local area plan. IDA Ireland acknowledged that this represented a constraint that precluded the consideration of any industrial or other employment-generating development project on the lands at Ballyadam unless it was a stand-alone, high-quality industrial development that occupied the entire site. The IDA made a formal submission in respect of an amendment to the Cobh municipal district draft local area plan to enable future flexibility in the development of the lands. IDA Ireland supported the deletion of that restriction and the adoption of a more flexible specific objective for the lands at Ballyadam.
The site is adjacent to the N25, which is a national primary route. The proximity of the site to the N25 and the planned provision of an interchange are significant factors in enhancing the attractiveness of the site as a location for FDI projects.
I am assured by the IDA that it is committed to the promotion of the lands at Ballyadam for development for employment-generating uses consistent with its development brief. The amendment to the local area plan affecting these lands, with the omission of the constraint limiting their development to a stand-alone industrial user and the planned provision of the grade-separated interchange on the N25 adjacent to the subject lands, will serve to enhance the prospects of realising this objective.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
There has been significant property activity involving the site over recent years, which has included land discussions with EirGrid to support the Celtic interconnector project, engagement with Cork County Council on the proposed M25 upgrade and the associated potential land requirement to facilitate same. IDA Ireland has also engaged in future-proofing the land bank for development, which included planning permission for a new vehicular access and internal road network within the site to support potential investment in advance of any upgrade to the N25 road network. This project included extensive consultation with all relevant stakeholders, including Cork County Council and various utility providers.
I thank the Minister, but he did not tell me how many inquiries about the site had been made in the past while. I was told in 2015 by the then Minister, Deputy Bruton, that there had been four significant inquiries, but these did not come to anything.
Is it not a fact that the road infrastructure deficit is the main reason the site is not being developed? Does the Minister agree with Mr. Martin Shanahan, the former head of the IDA, who told me at a committee meeting more than a year ago that this was the case and that the road needed to be upgraded? Is it not a disgrace that the project has been long-fingered or cancelled by the Government? The site has lain idle for 17 years despite millions of euro being invested in it. Given the shortage of such sites in the country, is it not time that the Government decided to upgrade the road so that the site can be developed properly?
How many inquiries have been made into the site in recent years?
I would not like to give the impression that this part of east Cork is not getting attention from the IDA. Last May, Merck announced an investment of approximately €440 million to increase membrane manufacturing capacity at its site in Carrigtwohill. This investment included an extra 370 jobs. Last July, Stryker officially opened a new high-tech facility with the creation of 600 jobs. Last September, AbbVie announced an investment of €60 million with the creation of 70 jobs. Last October, GE Healthcare announced an expansion worth €30 million with the creation of 140 jobs. All of this happened in the area in question.
East Cork is a highly competitive place globally in terms of attracting FDI. The close proximity to Cork Airport, a highly skilled workforce across the Cork region, and the Government's €200 million investment in the rail network between Cork and Midleton and Cork and Cobh are a help. That said, this strategic site is a priority for me and the IDA. It would be a significant help if we could upgrade the road infrastructure in and around the site, as accessing the site is difficult. I will continue speaking to the Minister for Transport about this matter.
I thank the Minister, but we are way over time.
I thank the Minister for acknowledging that the road infrastructure is a major problem. That a significant amount of money was spent on planning its upgrade but it was pulled at the last minute is of concern to me and local people, not only because of the Amgen site, but because of the dangerous road and the fact that the plan for thousands of more houses in the area could be put at risk because of the poor road infrastructure.
How many inquiries were made into the site in each of the past number of years? There were at least four in 2015. I acknowledge the great work that the IDA is doing in the area and I agree with the Minister in that regard. I visited the sites and companies in question. They are all high-tech, high-spec and great companies that employ many people on good wages and provide good prospects. The IDA is doing a marvellous job, but the site in question has been sitting idle for 17 years. It is one of the best serviced sites in the country, so it is a disgrace that we cannot move it forward. How many inquiries have there been?
I will see if I can get that number for the Deputy. I am not sure if I am supposed to give out information on the areas in respect of which the IDA has received inquiries, the number of inquiries and the number of visits, but I will give the Deputy any information on the issue that I can. I will correspond with him in that regard. He and I discuss the site constantly. We must try to find a way to move it forward. Regardless of whether it becomes a site for multiple companies to develop on or just one large player, it is a large site at 68 ha. If it were to be filled by a single large investment, it would need to be an enormous investment. We thought that was going to happen, of course. Unfortunately, it did not.
A portion of the site has been used for the interconnector with France, the related grid management system and so on. All of that is useful, but this is a site in a perfect location that is well served. It would be significantly helpful if we could get the road upgrade that was committed to. In budgetary terms, it seems that will not happen this year, but we need to work on bringing investment forward on the N25 generally as soon as we can.
77. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps he is taking to support existing levels of employment in regional towns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2049/23]
Thanks to the Covid pandemic, there has been a realisation that the delivery of broadband to every home across Ireland has the potential to transform our economy, and no more so than in rural Ireland. If this is going to happen, though, then we need a new strategic approach to supporting our provincial towns around the country and encouraging that type of investment. What are we doing to achieve that?
I thank the Deputy for his question. I take the opportunity to wish him well, given that he has announced he is moving to a new phase in his life.
Not yet, Dara.
Hopefully not for another few years, but Deputy Naughten will be a loss to politics and the House. He and I share a commitment to balanced regional enterprise growth, which is a key objective of the Government and a key component of the recently published White Paper on Enterprise, to which the Minister referred.
Recognising the significant challenge that businesses continue to face, and to protect employment across the country, the Government has put in place significant measures to help businesses in the current economic climate. All of these will favour businesses in regional towns - the temporary reduction in VAT on gas and electricity, the extension of the temporary reduction in VAT on tourism and hospitality, and the reform of the temporary business energy support scheme, TBESS.
The Department's enterprise agencies are focused on regional development, including the development of our regional towns. In 2022, the IDA secured 127 out of 242 investments in the regions. In 2022, €13 billion was invested in the Irish economy by IDA client companies in the regions across payroll, materials and services. Much of that was spent in regional towns, including in the Deputy's county. Enterprise Ireland has targeted 45,000 new jobs by 2024 and we have expanded the role of the local enterprise office, LEO, network.
Through the regional enterprise programmes, €126 million is being invested in 79 regional projects in the coming years. In Sligo, for example, the programme is funding the creation of a new gaming academy in Strandhill and a new advanced manufacturing centre in the middle of Sligo town, both of which will add considerably to Sligo’s reputation and enhance its ability to attract investment. One of those projects is a town centre development.
In my supplemental reply, I will go through Government initiatives, such as the town centre first programme, from other Departments.
I thank the Minister of State for his response. As he is aware, Project Ireland 2040 refers to a hub and spoke strategy. One of the towns identified in that regard is Athlone, which is doing very well and has become, in effect, the silicon heartland of northern Europe, with more tech jobs per capita than anywhere else in our region. However, that is not spinning out to other towns such as Longford, Roscommon, Ballinasloe, Mullingar and Tullamore.
The Minister of State gave the example of Sligo. I will give the example of Ballinasloe, where there is under-utilised water, wastewater and utilities. There is an abundance of public service land but IDA Ireland will not secure that additional public land for expansion into the future. I have raised this issue with the Taoiseach on numerous occasions on the floor of the House. He is coming to Ballinasloe tomorrow to see the lands for himself and I expect him to make an announcement regarding future investment on that campus.
I cannot comment on the Taoiseach’s plans for Ballinasloe. I know the town well. I am certainly happy to work with the Deputy to secure issues. However, I point out that there are facilities and opportunities through the regional enterprise plans programme. It is a bottom-up approach and I would certainly like to work with the Deputy on how we can input not just for Ballinasloe but also for Roscommon. In particular, developing a cluster around Athlone, to which the Deputy just referred, is a key priority that has been identified by the Minister, Deputy Coveney, within the new enterprise plan. The clustering approach is the only way we will secure investment. It is also about securing long-term investment by leveraging the experience in existing towns and centres such as Athlone and expanding them out. I refer to the success of places such as Monksland, which has been transformed in the past ten to 15 years. We need to leverage that enterprise experience out to surrounding areas.
Although IDA Ireland is achieving its target of 50% of its jobs being outside Dublin, we all know the big difficulty is revealed if you take the likes of Cork and Galway, the latter of which is in my region and that of the Minister of State, out of those figures. The figures are very skewed outside of the major cities. The Minister of State mentioned the town of Roscommon, which has not experienced FDI. The urban and rural areas of the town are now both completely supplied with fibre broadband. In fact, there are two fibre networks in the town. The Minister of State referred to a bottom-up approach yet on two occasions the local community there has applied for a digital hub to capitalise on the investment that is being put in but it has been refused investment from the State. These towns need assistance and focused support and that needs to come from the job agencies such as Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland.
I accept that but equally I could point to the success of Castlerea, which is also in the Deputy’s constituency and where there has been the fantastic story of Harmac Medical Products along with the fantastic work under way in the food innovation hub and in the demesne, led by our colleague, Paschal Fitzmaurice. I want to work with towns and try to engender that kind of spirit. The Deputy was involved in the creation of the rural regeneration and development fund, RRDF. There is the urban regeneration and development fund, URDF, for bigger towns. The Ministers, Deputies Humphreys and Darragh O’Brien, are leading out on those. We have the town centre first project from within the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. It is funded to the tune of €500,000 per project to try to get initiatives going in towns right across the country. We absolutely have an opportunity from the national broadband plan to build on that but we cannot guarantee success for every town. That is why the Minister, Deputy Coveney, is leading out on the regional enterprise conferences, starting in Letterkenny, as was stated, and continuing right across the country to try to engender that sense of enterprise in every region, not just some of them.
80. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he plans to extend financial supports to businesses involved in import substitution from outside the EU; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2050/23]
With Britain leaving the European Union, many supply chains have been disrupted. This has been compounded by Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine. The State should be supporting Irish companies that are substituting products or components that are being imported from outside the European Union but its development agencies have a blinkered approach to any businesses involved in this area. That needs to be addressed.
To be honest, I would like to have a more detailed conversation with the Deputy on this matter because I am not quite sure what he is getting at. The response I have before me deals with import substitution more generally, which is predominantly not allowed under WTO rules and so on. I will go through the written response and then we can try to get at what the Deputy is really looking for.
Success on export markets is crucial to the long-term growth of Irish businesses and the economy. As the Deputy is aware, assistance for companies focused on growth through international sales is a priority for my Department and our enterprise development agencies.
A keen knowledge of the competitive and sometimes challenging environment in which Irish companies operate is key to successful export growth. For example, Enterprise Ireland through its market research centre utilises world class market research reports on behalf of its clients in order to prepare companies for their export journey and equip them with the latest data on trade and market entry requirements, particularly for non-EU markets. Enterprise Ireland also has a programme of trade missions, trade fairs and knowledge events that give clients the opportunity to connect with existing and new customers, access key decision-makers, increase sales in international markets and exchange ideas. It has expanded its global presence through the opening of eight new offices in third country cities, including Montreal, Seattle, Melbourne and Ho Chi Minh City. These offices are being embedded into Enterprise Ireland overseas networks and will help to build new buyer relationships in markets where growth opportunities have been identified and market entry challenges can be identified, including the practice of import substitution if it arises.
Import substitution is a policy of blocking foreign imports. It is, of course, a non-tariff trade barrier in the context of World Trade Organization rules. The WTO has a number of agreements in place in an effort to curb such measures, while the European Commission, on behalf of the European Union, uses various tools to enforce commitments and rules, including on import substitution, under international trade agreements. One of these tools is dispute settlement at the WTO.
I am not talking about at the issue at that level. I have raised this previously in the House. The reality is that despite all the supply chain difficulties and the challenges in respect of currency fluctuation and general inflation impacting on competitiveness which are causing difficulties, particularly in certain sectors, there is no focus whatsoever on how those issues can be addressed by supporting indigenous companies to meet some of those import needs. When I raised this with the Minister’s predecessor, I was told that import substitution was not being raised by Irish businesses or domestic stakeholders through their engagement with businesses in this country. It is clear that this is a problem. Costs have gone up. Sourcing materials is becoming a bigger issue. The dogs in the street are talking about this yet we cannot address it. I ask the Minister to examine the matter.
We are addressing it, although perhaps not in the formal sense for which the Deputy is asking. Grain, for example, is one of the very few agricultural products of which we import substantial values in terms of feed grain and so on. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has examined specifically supporting Irish farmers to grow more grain in response to that exposure resulting from the impact of the war in Ukraine and grain prices going up.
It exposed Ireland's reliance on imports from markets that are now severely disrupted. It is a good example of trying to restructure our systems and create business opportunities here to grow products that we can perhaps produce more efficiently compared with importing from other parts of the world. I am sure there are other areas where we can do the same. Seaweed was mentioned. We should be able to produce enough raw material in Ireland for all our seaweed companies that are adding value, yet many of them are forced to import from abroad.
To be clear, we cannot deliberately disadvantage companies selling into Ireland by putting up non-tariff barriers to do that. Instead, we build an efficient, indigenous industry in Ireland that can compete and win.
That is the very point I am making. I am not looking for any tariffs to be put up. Tariffs have not suited our economy. All we have to do is look at history to see that. One indigenous crop with huge potential is hemp. There are issues regarding the regulation and licensing of that in this country.
I am talking about developing and supporting businesses in this country that are replacing product coming from other parts of the world outside the EU. We know there is far more flexibility with EU state aid rules post Covid. As a result of the war in Ukraine, there is flexibility on state aid rules, yet the State is not coherently looking at the potential to support our businesses. As I said in respect of the renewable energy sector, the focus is on export rather than meeting our domestic needs. There are demands and deficits we should be looking at.
Certainly, on the renewable energy sector, we are, first and foremost, trying to decarbonise our own grid but we recognise the potential for renewable energy generation in Ireland goes way beyond our domestic needs. I see energy in a similar way to dairy product. We produce a lot of dairy product, 85% of which is exported. By 2050, we will be in the same space from an energy perspective. From a clean energy perspective, we will be exporting large volumes of clean renewable energy that will be facilitated through a hydrogen industry, ammonia and interconnection. That is a good thing. Ireland is one of the most globalised economies on the planet. We import and export easily and we do not put barriers in place. We want to limit state aid interventions, where possible, so we can compete and our companies are not faced with barriers when they look to enter new markets. We have to be willing to apply that to the other countries we trade with and import from. I take the point the Deputy made. We can potentially look at some strategic sectors where we could do more at home and build an indigenous industry perhaps to reduce a reliance on imports from markets and countries that have proven to be disrupted.
81. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his plans to make grants available to SMEs to ensure their websites are accessible for those with disabilities; if it will become a requirement of the trading online voucher scheme that websites are accessible; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2047/23]
The European Union (Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020 lay responsibility on public bodies to make their websites and mobile apps accessible to people with disabilities. The next phase of this will involve the private sector and SMEs. I want us to get ahead of the curve and adapt our trading online vouchers for those who have already drawn them down, or will draw them down, to make their websites accessible in such a manner.
The trading online voucher scheme, available through local enterprise offices, is designed to encourage microenterprises with little or no online presence to trade more online, boost sales and reach new markets. The scheme allows expenditure for IT consultation, development or upgrade of e-commerce websites, implementing online payments or booking systems, purchase of Internet-related software, and developing an app. It can also contribute to developing and implementing a digital marketing strategy. The scheme provides a contribution of 50% towards the total costs, with a maximum grant of €2,500. As part of a project to develop the online trading capacity for any company, expenditure associated with making a website accessible would be considered under the scheme.
The scheme is targeted at the smallest of Irish businesses and will contribute to our target of 90% of SMEs at basic digital intensity by 2030, as set out in the White Paper on enterprise. Eligibility criteria for the scheme are designed to be proportionate to the scale and resources of the business.
The promotion of accessibility in all facets of life, including online, is important to ensure people with disabilities can fully participate in our society. Under the European Union regulations 2020, all public sector bodies are required to make their websites and mobile applications accessible for people with disabilities. These regulations do not exist, however, for private businesses. To support the promotion of web accessibility, guidelines and technical standards have been developed and the National Disability Authority has produced extensive guidance and codes of practice around accessibility.
I suspect the Deputy is asking for us to go beyond guidelines and codes of practice and, as part of a grant aid payout, there would be a requirement to make sure the applications being developed are fully accessible. That is not the case at present. It is something to which I will give serious consideration. I do not want to respond now with a definite yes, because there are knock-on consequences for that in terms of cost. It is, however, something we should look at.
I thank the Minister for his last comment. That is my objective in this matter. Inclusion and Accessibility Labs gave a presentation in the Houses of the Oireachtas recently. It pointed out that of 41 websites it audited, only 16 were considered usable by people with a disability. This does not just concern people with a disability. Many more people, for different reasons, find websites and technology difficult. Historically, there has been an under-drawdown of the trading online voucher. Very few draw down the maximum of €2,500. There are sufficient funds. There is always an underspend each year in respect of this scheme. We are looking for a little joined-up thinking regarding this issue.
As I said, I have some sympathy for this argument. We will look at it. I would like to understand why this has not happened to date. We do not have to be confined by a European regulation. We can go beyond that if we want. We need to make sure, in a practical sense, that it is implementable for the companies that are trying to go online and put in place services or products on a digital platform. I do not see any reason, if we are grant-aiding those efforts, we should not insist on these services being fully accessible, whether it is through an app, website, digital payment platform or whatever. The question is whether we incentivise this through an extra grant or simply require it for all grant drawdowns. I will take a look at it and come back to the Deputy on it.
We do not need an extra grant. Sufficient money is there within the budget. To return to Inclusion and Accessibility Labs presentation to the Oireachtas, its handout pointed out that on websites such as Facebook, Jobs.ie, Dunnes Stores, Free Now, Aer Lingus and Dublin Bus, there are difficulties for people with disabilities in accessing and using their interfaces. Yet, the websites of companies such as Netflix, The Irish Times and Just Eat are easily usable by people with disabilities. Clearly, some companies are doing it and some are not. These are the big players in the field but I am talking about our small indigenous companies.
There is an opportunity here for us as a country to get ahead of the curve. We already have huge levels of online penetration in respect of sales and businesses trading online. This is an additional unique marketing tool on which we can capitalise.
Yesterday, at the Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment, we had a discussion about the barriers faced by persons with disabilities in accessing employment. We heard from the National Disability Authority, NDA, and the Rehab Group, but I was struck in particular by Padraig Hannafin, which is why I wanted to come in on this question. He spoke about his experience as a disabled person trying to access the labour market and about the impact having a full-time job has had on him. There are massive levels of underemployment and unemployment within the disabled community, and this is a very welcome intervention.
This will not be driven by the private sector. It just will not drive it, for whatever reason. Individual companies in small pockets might, but this requires the State to drive it. There is no additional fund required, but Deputy Naughten suggested ensuring that, where money is invested, accessibility is counted as one of the measures as to how effective that investment will be. I was struck yesterday by not only the untapped capacity that is there but also the levels of exclusion felt by some people who are college-educated and job-ready but just cannot seem to break in. This would send a very important message to them as well.
I think there is a lot of agreement on this issue. We need to do more to help people with a disability into the workforce. There are some super projects around the country that are quite groundbreaking in this space and that we need to replicate in other parts of the country.
I think the question here, however, is about people with a disability as consumers being able to access services and products through online platforms. If we are putting money, as we are, into mentoring, grant-aiding and helping to fund businesses to go online, it is not an unreasonable ask, if we are picking up 50% of the cost of that for a company, that it make sure that designed into its move online is full accessibility. I want to make sure I am fully informed in this area before we make a final decision, but I will come back to the House on the matter maybe the next time we take questions to give the House an update on it.
90. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if preparatory work has begun to incorporate into legislation the recommendations on collective bargaining made by the high-level group on collective bargaining and industrial relations; if he will provide a timeline as to when the matter will be legislated for; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9169/23]
We did not think we would get to this question this morning. This question, like all my questions, is very straightforward. It asks if preparatory work has been done to incorporate into legislation recommendations on collective bargaining made by the high-level group on collective bargaining and industrial relations. Will the Minister provide a timeline as to when this matter will be legislated for? This relates to the transposition of a directive. I would be interested to hear the Minister's views as to how quickly this can be done and how much work has been done to date.
I thank the Deputy for this question. I do not think either of us thought it would be reached, but it is good it has been.
This was discussed quite recently at a meeting of the Labour Employer Economic Forum, LEEF, between Ministers, employer representatives and representatives of trade unions. The high-level working group's recommendations will now be taken into consideration. They are going to a subgroup of the LEEF where we will discuss this and work it out.
There are also, parallel to this, new European instructions to a recommendation on social dialogue whereby Ireland will have to engage with the European Commission as well as with other EU member states to see if we can maintain our levels of collective bargaining up to what is the agreed European rate. Let us be frank; we are not probably where we should be-----
No, we are not.
-----but we are ahead of some EU member states. There is an appetite between the employer group representatives and the trade unions to work with the Government to make sure we can achieve this in a timely manner.
We are absolutely miles away compared with many other European countries. We need to start making these moves very quickly. I do not necessarily agree with every single one of the recommendations that were made, but we need to start having that discussion here and broadening it out. I respect the fact there must be discussions with the Commission, but I would like to see some domestic focus on this in order that we bring in as many voices as we possibly can. We can see the disparity. There is a value to every worker in terms of money, not just in terms and conditions but in terms and conditions as well, in being a trade union member. What we have now, however, is a State where trade union membership is in decline for various and many reasons. There is an onus now to bring that coverage, by collective bargaining, up to 80%. That will be a challenge. The quicker that work gets under way, the better for everyone, and I mean the better for all the people who are desperately waiting on it because they want to see the bonus that comes from being a trade union member in their back pockets.
I fully agree with the Deputy. An efficient collective bargaining system is not just in the interest of the workers but also in the interest of the employers and, most importantly, the interest of the economy and society as a whole. We appreciate, and I agree with the Deputy, that 80% will be a challenge, but it is a challenge the Government is very much keen to rise to. The process has begun and, in due course, bringing in Members of the Oireachtas as part of that implementation process will be very important. I look forward to engaging with the Deputy on that in the future.
Does the Minister of State have a timeline as to when this matter will be legislated for? I understand there is a timeline dictated by the European Union, but preparatory work also has to be under way. The report is done but the discussions now need to be had as to how that can be transposed into our system, which is primarily a voluntary system. If there is 80% collective bargaining coverage, that gives workers good power to negotiate at the level of their workplace. While it will still be voluntary, they will have a little more push to ensure their voices are heard. I am just concerned there will be some drift while there are discussions happening in several places. We just need to know not only that this is being knitted together but also that there is a timeline in place and that the Department has sight of when this legislation will be ready. I do not think the legislation will be quick or easy to do, but it is extremely important we get it right.
As I mentioned, the Labour Employer Economic Forum discussed this last month. There will be a meeting of the subgroup to discuss this in March. Following that meeting, we will look at any legislative process, but that will be in discussion with European colleagues to see if we can meet the European ambitions as were announced at the Council meeting just two weeks ago.
Are you happy, Deputy?
Delighted.
99. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps he is taking to assist private sector employers to support employees working from home and digital co-working hubs in local towns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2048/23]
We are running through questions at an awful rate. What are we doing to assist workers to work from home and in co-working hubs?
As referred to earlier, the regional enterprise plans have identified from within our Department significant opportunities for workers within hubs and in terms of support from home. Support through the national broadband plan, with which the Deputy will be familiar, in terms of strengthening the capacity of the plan to assist workers to work from home throughout the country, is a priority. The roll-out is continuing to ensure we get the appropriate and the most advanced fibre to as many locations as possible to encourage this to continue.
The reason I tabled this question is that we are bringing fibre into homes, and that is very positive and it is happening throughout the country. However, there will be issues in terms of health and safety for employers, which is encouraging some employers to bring people back into the office. I think the solution to all this is a hybrid mechanism in order that people do not work at home on their own. Along with the health and safety issues, there are mental health issues associated with that. However, bringing workers into a hub reduces the need for them to commute long distances to work and reduces the need for the employer to bring them physically into work while addressing those concerns. There is an opportunity there to reconstitute digital hubs as hybrid locations, meeting the needs not just of small and medium-sized businesses but of multinational businesses as well. It provides us with an opportunity to create a niche where we have people coming together and coming up with new, innovative ideas which will drive the innovative solutions of the future.
Absolutely. I agree with the Deputy on the hubs structure. As he will know, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, is leading out a connected hubs network to ensure the digital hubs are developing around the country, have a connection to one another and can be used in exactly the manner the Deputy has outlined.
It is important that we cannot dictate to employers how they arrange employment opportunities. The Deputy touched on a very good issue with regard to the appropriateness of a hybrid mix for the benefit of both employees and employers. Many employers are finding their way around that system as the year progresses.
Does Deputy Naughten wish to comment further?
No. I thank the Minister of State.
