I must now deal with the deferred division on the ministerial amendment to the motion regarding Business Costs for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. Today, on the question, "That the amendment be made", a division was claimed and that division must be taken now.
Business Costs for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]
The following motion was moved by Deputy Noel Grealish on Wednesday, 14 February 2024:
That Dáil Éireann:
recognises that:
— Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are a critical pillar of the Irish economy;
— the people who create and lead SMEs throughout the country are incredibly diverse, from family-owned businesses, rural-owner managers, traditional to high growth and technology start-ups;
— there are more than 1.2 million people employed by SMEs in Ireland;
— according to the Central Statistics Office, SMEs represent up to 99.8 per cent of active enterprises, with 69.2 per cent persons employed, which generated 41.5 per cent turnover, and Gross Value Added of 34.8 per cent in 2021; and
— the vast majority of these enterprises are micro-sized enterprises that employ less than 10 people;
notes that:
— Government policy decisions have increased significantly the cost of doing business, particularly in the SME sector;
— many SMEs, including rural and regional micro, small and medium sized businesses, are facing significant cost challenges;
— PricewaterhouseCoopers recently predicted that the number of business insolvencies would grow to 1,000 this year, with the retail, hospitality, and construction sectors coming under particular pressure;
— input costs due to the increases in energy, inflation, insurance, cost of labour, national minimum wage increases, higher Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI), plans for pension auto-enrolment, extended sick-pay entitlements on top of Value Added Tax (VAT) increases, along with many other input factors are making it very difficult for small businesses to continue trading;
— the recent Ireland's Experience Economy survey from the Irish Business and Employers Confederation found that additional costs associated with energy, inflation, and labour were leading concerns for businesses in the hospitality, retail, travel, food, drink, tourism, and entertainment sectors;
— increased wage levels for those on employment permits will have additional implications for the food processing, horticulture and healthcare sectors;
— a combination of higher costs will lead to rising prices and closures;
— the present challenges to business viability in the restaurant and hospitality sector has the potential to significantly affect tourism this year; and
— increases in the national minimum wage will not address the cost-of-living issue for employees because, in the absence of access to affordable housing, most increases in wages will go to pay increased housing costs;
calls on the Government to:
— immediately establish a taskforce representative of micro and small business with Government Departments and agencies personally chaired by a Cabinet Minister to review the application of all Government controlled costs and to reduce Government charges and costs of doing business, with quarterly updates provided to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment;
— as an interim measure:
— reduce the current VAT rate of 13.5 per cent to 9 per cent for food businesses in the hospitality sector before Easter;
— ensure the 8.8 per cent employer's PRSI rate covers the full national minimum wage level by increasing the 11.05 per cent threshold from €441 to €495.30 per week, commencing before Easter;
— expedite the work permit process and abolish welfare traps which will greatly aid staffing shortages; and
— revise the debt warehousing scheme to allow longer repayment schedules and preferential interest rates to retain business viability and sectoral employment;
— develop an action plan for financial education to strengthen the financial management skills of small business owners and managers;
— create a panel of industry expert advisors and mentors for SMEs partially funded by the State;
— expand access to credit initiatives for SMEs; and
— enhance flexibility in Government procurement of State services to permit Departments, such as Education, Health, Defence, and Housing, Local Government and Heritage, to procure supplies from local suppliers, as opposed to relying solely on central purchasing.
Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:
To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:
"welcomes:
— the introduction of measures aimed at improving working conditions in Ireland, such as the right to request remote work, sick pay legislation (mandatory paid sick days), pension auto-enrolment, Parent’s Leave and Parent’s Benefit, an additional public holiday and the transition to a Living Wage;
— the broader direct and taxation measures contained in the 2024 Budget package, aimed at alleviating some of the cost pressures faced by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs);
— the introduction of the once-off Increased Cost of Business (ICOB) Grant Scheme, which will provide €257 million to small and medium sized businesses and is estimated to support 143,000 or 95 per cent of commercially trading businesses; and
— the recent announcement regarding the tax debt warehousing scheme, whereby the interest rate applying to warehoused tax debt has been reduced to zero per cent;
acknowledges:
— the sustained Government supports to assist Irish enterprises across successive periods of disruption in recent years and the deployment of extensive Exchequer resources to this end;
— the recent Government initiatives taken to support the enterprise sector and the availability of the 9 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) rate to the end of August 2023 (in recognition of concerns raised by the hospitality and tourism sectors);
— the extension of vital energy supports including the 9 per cent VAT rate on gas and electricity for a further year to the end of 2024 and the temporary excise rate reductions applying to auto diesel, petrol and marked gas oil until the final day of March 2024;
— the continued supports available to businesses relating to improvements to working conditions in Ireland, such as the right to request remote work, sick pay legislation (mandatory paid sick days), pension auto-enrolment, Parent’s Leave and Parent’s Benefit, an additional public holiday and the transition to a Living Wage;
— the wide range of financial, mentoring and training supports on offer to Irish SMEs from Government agencies, including Enterprise Ireland as well as the Local Enterprise Offices; and
— the Government’s ongoing engagement with business across multiple sectors through various Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment platforms, such as the Hospitality and Tourism Forum, the SME Taskforce, the Enterprise Forum and the Retail Forum; and
supports:
— the decision by Government to undertake a joint assessment of the cumulative impact of changes to working conditions on employers by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, working jointly with the Department of Social Protection; with a view to taking the necessary policy initiatives to support businesses in sectors under financial pressure where appropriate; and
— the Government's ongoing commitment to monitor the business environment for potential threats and subsequent solutions.".
- (Minister of State at the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy Anne Rabbitte)
The Dáil divided by electronic means.
Under Standing Order 83(3)(b) I propose that the vote be taken by other than electronic means.
As the gap was fewer than ten that is in order and can proceed.
Amendment again put:
The Dáil divided: Tá, 73; Níl, 64; Staon, 0.
Tá
- Brophy, Colm.
- Bruton, Richard.
- Burke, Colm.
- Burke, Peter.
- Butler, Mary.
- Byrne, Thomas.
- Cahill, Jackie.
- Calleary, Dara.
- Cannon, Ciarán.
- Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
- Chambers, Jack.
- Collins, Niall.
- Costello, Patrick.
- Cowen, Barry.
- Creed, Michael.
- Crowe, Cathal.
- Devlin, Cormac.
- Dillon, Alan.
- Donnelly, Stephen.
- Donohoe, Paschal.
- Duffy, Francis Noel.
- Durkan, Bernard J.
- English, Damien.
- Farrell, Alan.
- Feighan, Frankie.
- Flaherty, Joe.
- Fleming, Sean.
- Foley, Norma.
- Griffin, Brendan.
- Haughey, Seán.
- Heydon, Martin.
- Higgins, Emer.
- Humphreys, Heather.
- Kehoe, Paul.
- Lahart, John.
- Lawless, James.
- Leddin, Brian.
- Madigan, Josepha.
- Martin, Catherine.
- Martin, Micheál.
- Matthews, Steven.
- McAuliffe, Paul.
- McConalogue, Charlie.
- McEntee, Helen.
- McGrath, Michael.
- McGuinness, John.
- McHugh, Joe.
- Moynihan, Aindrias.
- Moynihan, Michael.
- Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
- Naughton, Hildegarde.
- Noonan, Malcolm.
- O'Brien, Darragh.
- O'Callaghan, Jim.
- O'Connor, James.
- O'Dea, Willie.
- O'Donnell, Kieran.
- O'Dowd, Fergus.
- O'Gorman, Roderic.
- O'Sullivan, Christopher.
- O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
- Ó Cathasaigh, Marc.
- Ó Cuív, Éamon.
- Phelan, John Paul.
- Rabbitte, Anne.
- Richmond, Neale.
- Ring, Michael.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Smyth, Niamh.
- Smyth, Ossian.
- Stanton, David.
- Troy, Robert.
- Varadkar, Leo.
Níl
- Andrews, Chris.
- Bacik, Ivana.
- Barry, Mick.
- Berry, Cathal.
- Boyd Barrett, Richard.
- Brady, John.
- Browne, Martin.
- Buckley, Pat.
- Cairns, Holly.
- Canney, Seán.
- Carthy, Matt.
- Clarke, Sorca.
- Collins, Joan.
- Collins, Michael.
- Conway-Walsh, Rose.
- Cronin, Réada.
- Crowe, Seán.
- Cullinane, David.
- Daly, Pa.
- Doherty, Pearse.
- Donnelly, Paul.
- Ellis, Dessie.
- Farrell, Mairéad.
- Fitzpatrick, Peter.
- Funchion, Kathleen.
- Gannon, Gary.
- Gould, Thomas.
- Grealish, Noel.
- Guirke, Johnny.
- Healy-Rae, Danny.
- Healy-Rae, Michael.
- Howlin, Brendan.
- Kenny, Gino.
- Kenny, Martin.
- Kerrane, Claire.
- Lowry, Michael.
- Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
- McNamara, Michael.
- Mitchell, Denise.
- Munster, Imelda.
- Murphy, Catherine.
- Murphy, Paul.
- Murphy, Verona.
- Mythen, Johnny.
- Nash, Ged.
- Nolan, Carol.
- O'Callaghan, Cian.
- O'Donoghue, Richard.
- O'Reilly, Louise.
- O'Rourke, Darren.
- Ó Broin, Eoin.
- Ó Laoghaire, Donnchadh.
- Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- Quinlivan, Maurice.
- Ryan, Patricia.
- Shanahan, Matt.
- Sherlock, Sean.
- Shortall, Róisín.
- Smith, Duncan.
- Stanley, Brian.
- Tóibín, Peadar.
- Tully, Pauline.
- Ward, Mark.
Staon
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Hildegarde Naughton and Cormac Devlin; Níl, Deputies Verona Murphy and Matt Shanahan.
Amendment declared carried.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.
Cuireadh an Dáil ar athló ar 8.35 p.m. go dtí 9 a.m., Déardaoin, an 15 Feabhra 2024.
The Dáil adjourned at 8.35 p.m. until 9 a.m. on Thursday, 15 February 2024.