Seanad Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 9 Mar 2017

Vol. 250 No. 12

Commencement Matters

Renewable Energy Projects

Senator Jennifer Murnane O'Connor

I welcome the Minister of State. The European Commission recently circulated proposals for revising the Renewable Energy Directive. The proposals recommend ending the EU production of all crops-based biofuels. If enacted the proposals will have a disastrous impact on farming and on rural jobs across Europe and in Ireland and they will destroy efforts to revive the Irish sugar industry. The secretary general of Europe's main farming organisation, the Committee of Professional Agricultural Organisations, COPA, has pointed out that the Commission's proposal ignores the facts about biofuels produced from sustainable EU-produced sugar beet, feed corn or rapeseed. It can provide environmentally-friendly transport fuel, help decarbonise road transport, enhance EU food security, create balance in EU agricultural markets and provide protein for rich animal feed to livestock producers. It is an extra source of income for farm families and a key source of growth and jobs in the EU rural areas.

The president of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association, Mr. Patrick Kent, recently warned that the European Commission proposals would put tens of thousands of jobs across Europe at risk. He described the proposals as really bad news for EU farmers, for the environment and for those who believe that fact and scientific reason should underpin EU decision making. He concluded that only fossil fuel oil companies and palm olive importers would be delighted with the Commission.

The Commission proposals are completely illogical and are based on myth about commodity price movements that have been shown to be false. They ignore the best available science and down play the role that EU producers of sustainable ethanol can play in providing Europe with a cleaner energy mix for road transport, with lower green gas emissions and better engine performances. They ignore the reality that the feed corn and sugar beet used in EU ethanol production is not produced by direct human consumption. It is scandalous that all this is ignored. There are tens of thousands of jobs at stake.

In addition, the European Commission proposals are dramatically out of line with the thinking of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

In 2015 the organisation's general secretary said that to deal with a world population of 9 billion by 2050, we needed to move from a food versus fuel to a food and fuel debate. During the years Members of all the major political parties have promised support for the revival of the Irish sugar industry through the creation of a biorefinery capable of producing sugar ethanol and animal feed. Such a project will require an investment of over €300 million. The Commission has seriously undermined investors' confidence in biofuels and its latest proposals will sound the death knell for their confidence. The president of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association, ICSA, said it beggared belief the proposals could be supported at European Council or parliamentary level. Through the Committee of Professional Agricultural Organisations, COPA, European farmers have rejected them. Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly recently described them as far too drastic and he is right. The question is whether the Government is opposed to the Commission's proposals. I would like a simple yes or no answer.

Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Deputy Joe McHugh)

Ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghabháil leis an Seanadóir fá choinne na ceiste seo a ardú ar maidin. Tá mé sásta bheith ar ais sa Seanad arís. I thank the Senator for raising this important matter.

On 30 November last the European Commission published the Clean Energy for All Europeans package which included eight legislative proposals. Included in the wide-ranging package is a proposal for a new renewable energy directive to replace the existing 2009 directive, No. 2009/28/EC, which will expire at the end of 2020. The Department of Communications, Climate Change and Environment recently launched a public consultation process on the package and details are available on its website. The Minister, Deputy Denis Naughten, encourages stakeholders and citizens alike to have an input into the process.

The 2009 EU renewable energy directive set Ireland a legally binding target of meeting 16% of its energy requirements from renewable sources by 2020. Ireland is committed to achieving this target through meeting 40% of the demand for electricity, 12% of the demand for heat and 10% of the demand for transport from renewable sources of energy, with the latter target also being legally binding. In the transport sector Ireland aims to meet its 10% target by 2020, mainly through the increased use of sustainable biofuels, with electric vehicles also making a small contribution. A further increase in the obligation rate under the biofuels obligation scheme took effect from 1 January 2017, when the rate increased to 8% by volume.

The proposals in the new renewable energy directive build on the existing directive and provide a framework for renewable energy sources development to 2030. Included among the proposals is an obligation on transport fuel suppliers across the European Union to provide for an increasing share of renewable low-carbon fuels. There is an obligation on fuel suppliers to provide a minimum share of energy from advanced biofuels and renewable electricity. In addition, it is proposed that the existing cap on food-based biofuels that can be counted towards the EU target be gradually reduced in the decade to 2030.

All of this is in line with the Commission’s publication, A European Strategy for Low Emission Mobility, published in 2016. The low emission mobility strategy outlines the initiatives the Commission is planning in the coming years and is regarded as one of the tools to modernise the European economy and strengthen its internal market. It highlights three main elements, namely, increasing the efficiency of the transport system, speeding up the deployment of low emission alternative energy sources for transport and moving towards zero emissions vehicles.

The issue of indirect land use change, ILUC, which can occur when crop-based biofuels are deployed needs to be addressed, while the production of next generation biofuels must be encouraged and supported. A key priority for the Government is to optimise the contribution of agriculture to securing a vibrant and sustainable rural economy. There will be challenges in meeting the increasing demand for land, where there is a need to sustainably increase food production and provide more feedstock for bioenergy. However, the continued shift in focus away from crop-based biofuels, as proposed in the new directive, and the innovative use of waste products, including animal by-products, can help to achieve the demand for bioenergy and lead to job creation and growth. This is already happening. For example, almost all of the biofuels produced in Ireland in recent years have been manufactured from wastes such as tallow and used cooking oil.

Discussion of the proposed new renewables directive will be the subject of negotiations between member states and the Commission in the coming months. Given the extensive nature of proposals included in the new directive, detailed analysis and further consideration of them is under way. Officials in the Minister's Department will be working closely with counterparts in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine on the biofuel and biomass aspects of the proposals. One of the Minister's key aims is to ensure the level of ambition agreed to, combined with the structures and arrangements to be put in place, will facilitate the meeting of renewable energy targets to 2030 in a manner that will optimise the contribution of the agrifood sector to the economy. In summary, the Minister would like to assure the House that both he and his officials will be working to ensure appropriate and sustainable outcomes are achieved for all, including agreement on biofuel targets.

In response to the Senator's specific request for a yes or no answer, it is obvious from the reply that there is a consultation process for the new directive. It is important that the worries and fears expressed be fed into the process, which I am sure will happen. There is a balance to be struck between land usage and the need for biofuels. Based on the feedback, analysis and statistics, it seems that much of the usage of biofuels is stemming from new mechanisms rather than land use.

Senator Jennifer Murnane O'Connor

I thank the Minister of State. I am disappointed that the Minister, Deputy Denis Naughten, cannot be here. It is important to emphasise that European farmers, through the COPA, have rejected the proposals from the Commission. I know all about it as I live in Carlow town where the sugar factory was one of the biggest employers. It is crucial to revive the Irish sugar industry for the sake of rural farmers, industry and employment creation. I am not really happy with the answer given and hope the Minister can come and clarify it as I want to go back to the farmers and people I represent. The response seems to indicate a mixed reaction as the Minister and the officials are in negotiations. I ask him to make sure farmers who have rejected the proposals made are listened to. What they are looking for is the revival of the sugar factories.

Deputy Joe McHugh

I will have no problem in relaying that message. To reiterate the Senator's point about the sugar industry, it was the single biggest decision that affected many farmers and the industry in a negative way. We are all agreed on that point. A lot of people are saying it should not have happened. After the decision was made in 2011 the then Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Simon Coveney, would have had numerous meetings. If I recall correctly, there was momentum towards a potential commercial solution in the form of a buy-in. That is still on the table and I encourage the group to stay in touch with Members of this House to ensure there will be possible options for the revival of the sugar industry. Obviously, it would have to be commercially viable. I encourage stakeholders to become involved again.

At a bigger level, when we talk about food production and the pressures on land use, in rural Ireland there are many fields that are not being used. A lot of land is being used for grazing purposes. In my county land is being used for sheep and cattle production. As we need land for that purpose, I understand the Senator's point about the pressures on land use. However, there are also global challenges, as well as global solutions. Somebody told me recently that not alone could Africa provide enough food for people living there; it could also feed the world. We have to look at new and alternative ways. If we look at the population of a country like Kenya, year on year there will be 1 million new workers joining the workforce. By 2050 the population of Nigeria will treble, while the population of the continent of Africa will double to 2.4 billion. The Senator is right in saying it is important to have this debate. It is also important that we do not hold it in isolation in a silo at European level as everything has an impact. I thank the Senator for raising this very important point.

Residential Institutions Redress Scheme

Senator Victor Boyhan

I welcome the Minister and thank him for coming to deal with what I consider to be an extremely important matter, particularly in the context of the various issues of abuse that have been arising in respect of many residential and non-residential institutions run and co-ordinated by the State and its agencies, as well as by religious orders.

I have asked the Minister here to clarify and give an update on the status of the residential redress board scheme, which was established by statute to deal with the issue in a fair and reasonable way by giving some redress to people who had gone through the board's pre-scrutiny process. This was not just a hand out of money to people, it was there to support them with counselling, housing and general support. Many mistakes were made in how it was all handled, but it was another time. If it were to go ahead again or if it were reactivated, it would be done somewhat differently. Huge experience was gained in how the compensation scheme was administered.

The other element of my query, on which I hope for clarification from the Minister, is the indemnity scheme to which a previous Administration signed up with CORI. This indemnity scheme was extraordinary to say the least. I have a copy of it, with all of the signatories of all the parties to the scheme, and I am fully aware of its content. What is interesting is the group of religious orders under the umbrella of CORI undertook to give the State substantial money and substantial property. We know from following through on all of this that a number of these properties became quite complicated and could not be transferred for various reasons. Some of them were entailed. There was a measure of commitment by the group under CORI to give some token, and that is all it can be suggested it is, towards what was the institutional residential redress scheme. My query is where is the scheme now? Is it being wound down? Does it have the capacity to be wound up again in light of recent events? How can it be accessed? What are the Government's intentions with regard to pursuing it? I spoke to Deputy Jan O'Sullivan and looked at correspondence she had when she was a Minister. She received a number of responses when the Department was trying to pursue the issue of the properties and money. It is quite a complex issue but we need to know. It is about public transparency in all of this process and with regard to the indemnity scheme. I await the response of the Minister and I thank him for coming to the House.

Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Richard Bruton)

I thank Senator Boyhan for raising this huge issue. Before I came in I took the opportunity to look back at some of the debate in the House on the Ryan report, which revealed the full horrors of what happened in residential institutions where sexual abuse was reported to be endemic in boys' institutions and physical and emotional abuse and neglect were routine. Members of the congregations who were perpetrators of abuse were never reported to the Garda and cases were managed with a view to protecting the institution and not the children. Children were not believed when they reported incidences. The Department of Education and Skills comes out extremely badly from the report because it did not inspect effectively, it ignored problems which were revealed and it ignored recommendations to respond. As the Senator has said, these were children who often had been entrusted to the congregations by the State. We can only imagine how vulnerable a child was who had been taken away from his or her parents by the State and entrusted to such an institution.

This is the backdrop to the Residential Institutions Redress Board, which was established in 2002 under the Residential Institutions Redress Act 2002 to make fair and reasonable payments to those who, as children, were abused while resident in 139 scheduled institutions. To date, the redress board has made in the order of 15,600 awards. Overall expenditure at the end of 2016 was €1.239 billion. At this stage, the work of the board is largely complete. It has dealt with all applications and at present no remaining applications are on hand. A number of judicial review applications are still before the courts and they will have to be dealt with before they are resolved.

The Senator referred to the indemnity agreement. Eighteen of the religious congregations entered an indemnity agreement in 2002, and agreed to provide a collective contribution of €128 million, comprising cash, counselling services and property. Work is continuing to complete the legal requirements to finalise the transfer of the remaining 11 properties. I understand that €113 million has been realised and the remainder is being worked through. It is worth noting that most of the properties are already in use by the intended recipients.

Significantly, today the Comptroller and Auditor General will publish a report on the scheme. It is worth recalling that after the Ryan report was published a commitment was made by the congregations to make an additional contribution of €350 million. Today, the Comptroller and Auditor General will report not only on the indemnity scheme but also on the commitments with regard to the €350 million. The report confirms that when the withdrawal of one offer previously made is combined with some changes in the valuation of properties previously offered, the total value of the offers currently in place and the contributions already made by the congregations comes to €320 million, of which €209 million has been received.

The report also confirms the total cost of all elements of residential abuse, including the inquiry, the redress scheme and related survivor supports, is €1.518 billion. This means that even if all the offers currently on the table are delivered upon, the religious congregations will have funded 21.1% of the total cost of residential abuse while the State will have funded 78.9%. The contributions and offers made by the congregations relate to the €128 million under the 2002 indemnity agreement and the 2009 voluntary offer of €352 million which has been revised to €192 million of which €96.1 million has been realised.

The 50:50 target between the State and the congregations for meeting the costs of abuse has not been signed up to by the congregations. However, it has been the position of successive Governments that given their responsibility for managing the institutions where horrific and life-altering abuse took place, the congregations should meet 50% of the cost of inquiring into what happened and compensating the victims of that abuse. It is also important to note that, given the contents of the 2002 indemnity agreement signed up to by the then Government, the Government today does not have legal mechanisms open to it to compel religious congregations to meet the 50:50 target or to deliver more rapidly on the voluntary offers made in 2009.

Today’s report by the Comptroller and Auditor General summarises and updates us on the response of the State and the congregations to those events. It makes a number of recommendations for the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in respect of the lessons that have been learned from how this was administered, and all of these have been accepted.

As Minister for Education and Skills I find it very disappointing and frustrating that the organisations responsible for protecting children, which managed the institutions in which these horrendous acts took place, would apparently place so little value on their responsibility. These were institutions where children suffered extremely badly and the organisations have a moral responsibility to live up to the commitments they made. We all know their mission is to protect and serve and uphold moral values, and many ordinary Catholics are dismayed we are not getting closer to seeing these commitments honoured but instead are moving further away. Unfortunately, as a result of agreements put in place by previous Governments we have no legal mechanisms open to us to compel the congregations to meet these targets. Ruairí Quinn, in particular, under the previous Government worked hard in holding meetings and engaging directly with the congregations to seek to put moral pressure on them to deliver on their responsibilities. Unfortunately, after today’s report we have to ask questions as to why organisations with stated missions to serve the public and uphold moral codes apparently place so little importance on these values.

Senator Victor Boyhan

I thank the Minister for his comprehensive response. It is something new for me. I will certainly look for the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General. I am conscious of the fact it is an indictment of the system, the State and the Legislature that a previous Government gave an indemnity scheme to a number of religious orders. Many other people who had been in institutional care were barred from going through the redress scheme. It is not correct to state everyone has been satisfied, only those included in the Schedule.

A Schedule to the legislation identified a number of institutions but the Bethany Home, for instance, has never been included. People have been on to the Minister's office constantly about that, and I have seen a great deal of correspondence in that regard. There are many such institutions but because there was no proven track record of State intervention or support, access was denied. There is a group of people who feel they got a raw deal. Personally, I know three or four people who are taking judicial reviews at no cost to themselves because decent solicitors' firms in Dublin are supporting them, based on the huge amount of evidence they have presented.

I thank the Minister for being very frank, honest and upfront. I can see he empathises with the issues around this. As he raised it, I ask if he can come back to the House on the Comptroller and Auditor General's report, which is a concrete bit of work and about which we will know more today. In that, there will be lessons for all of us to learn. Clearly, there will have to be other forms of redress for other people which we will discuss in both Houses over the next few weeks. These people got a raw deal and deserve justice, fair play and redress. I thank the Minister for the detailed report and express the hope that we will look at this, if appropriate in one of the joint committees, with a view to the social implications, in particular. While we may not have a legal option to pursue these religious orders, we have leverage. A number of these institutions are operating schools under the Minister's remit. They are also operating hospitals and availing of public funds. Perhaps that is the leverage we can use. While the public can ultimately name and shame them, we must at the end of the day examine whether it is right and proper to fund and assist these congregations where they fail to face up to their responsibilities.

Deputy Richard Bruton

I share the Senator's disappointment that today's report from the Comptroller and Auditor General reveals that we are not moving further to a position in which the church honours even the two commitments it made. The indemnity commitment was €128 million and there was an additional commitment of €352 million. We have not succeeded in seeing those transfers being made. They will move to completion on the first €128 million but we are a long way from seeing the second commitment made after the Ryan report being met. It was only after the Ryan report that we realised the full scale of what was involved and the systematic and horrific nature of it. The fact is that some of the most vulnerable children were entrusted at a very vulnerable point in their lives to the care of these institutions. I agree with the Senator that there is a moral responsibility to honour the commitments which have been made and to move to respect the view of Government, which has been held by successive Administrations, that a 50:50 share out is correct.

As to the legal or moral mechanisms open to Government, Ruairí Quinn tried extremely hard to approach this but we have not moved forward having made that effort. Once again, I appeal to the institutions to honour the commitments they made. We have seen again this week other examples of cases where children were treated in an appalling way. We must approach this openly and try to resolve it while supporting those who have been very adversely affected. When it comes to the State, its liability will always be determined on the extent to which it was involved, regulated or oversaw an institution. That was the basis on which the 50:50 split was deemed a fair allocation in the case of residential institutions. In those cases, the State took the children away from their parents through the courts and otherwise and entrusted them to the care of the congregations. The State had a responsibility and, through the Department, oversaw the regulation of those institutions. As such, a share of responsibility fell on both sides. If we are to put this behind us, that share out must be respected.

Community Enterprise Centres

Senator Catherine Noone

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy John Halligan, for coming to the House. I raise as a Commencement matter the funding schemes for community-run enterprise centres. I was in contact recently with a councillor about a community enterprise centre in his locality which received a grant from Enterprise Ireland to provide for the employment of a business manager on a full-time basis for two years. During those two years, the centre saw significant improvements in the refurbishment of its building and in the number of upskilling classes and training courses available there. However, since the funding provision ceased, the centre can only afford to hire a business manager on a part-time basis on a modest wage of €8,000 per year. The individual who is responsible for managing the business centre is a community-spirited woman who has an interest in keeping up this job even though most people would be unwilling to do it for that sum.

Community enterprise centres are important to the development of rural Ireland. The national association for community-owned enterprise centres consists of a network of 95 active community enterprise centres across the Republic. These centres are hubs of entrepreneurial activity and constantly encourage local enterprise development and engagement with the wider local community to create jobs and economic activity. A number of centres have been established in areas which suffer from low employment and many provide upskilling and training courses. There have been schemes in the past to facilitate centres, including the community enterprise initiative fund in 2015 and the community enterprise centre business development manager scheme of 2012. These schemes facilitated the development of centres significantly. Further, the Action Plan for Jobs for 2017 includes plans to invest up to €60 million between 2017 and 2020 to support enterprise and job creation nationally. While enterprise centres will be eligible to apply for this competitive funding through Enterprise Ireland, not all will be selected for such initiatives and, moreover, the schemes are time limited. As a result, when a scheme ends, centres may very well be placed back in a situation of uncertainty as in the case I have described.

I ask the Minister of State to consider allocating long-term funding to community-owned enterprise centres to allow them to hire full-time business managers to improve their efficiency in developing rural Ireland and to allow managers to continue their good work, in particular in rural areas.

Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy John Halligan)

I thank Senator Noone for raising the matter. As the Minister, Deputy Mary Mitchell O’Connor, is currently travelling abroad, I am taking this debate on her behalf.

My Department has supported the establishment of community enterprise centres throughout the country through Enterprise Ireland, which manages the community enterprise centre, or CEC, scheme. Since the launch of the first CEC scheme in 1989, €64 million has been approved for the development of centres across Ireland. Supported by four CEC schemes operated in 1989, 2000, 2006 and 2008, 157 centres were approved for financial support, of which 117 have been completed. These investments have supported approximately 1,300 companies employing over 6,000 people across Ireland. In 2012, a €2 million programme was launched for CEC business development managers and 46 business development managers were funded by Enterprise Ireland.

In 2015, my Department, in conjunction with Enterprise Ireland, adopted a new approach to supporting job creation initiatives at local and regional level in support of the regional Acton Plan for Jobs through competitive funding schemes. As such, Enterprise Ireland launched the community enterprise initiatives fund, which focused on community-driven enterprise initiatives and ways in which all local players, public and private, could work together to maximise job creation. The fund was open to existing CECs and also to organisations or groups of organisations with innovative ideas to create jobs, promote entrepreneurship, boost innovation and enhance exports.

In June 2016, €3 million was awarded for 32 projects to work together at regional level.

To continue to stimulate regional growth, as detailed in the Action Plan for Jobs 2017, the Government will provide for investment of up to €60 million between 2017 and 2020 to support collaborative approaches to boost enterprise and job creation throughout the country. As part of this commitment, Enterprise Ireland will announce a new competitive fund in the near term. This competitive funding is aimed at accelerating regional economic recovery by delivering on the potential of local and regional strengths. The key to this will be a focus on larger scale, regionally strategic projects, a competitive local and enterprise initiative call for proposals and the roll-out of the regional accelerator scheme 2015 to 2017, following the first call for expressions of interest in 2016. This competitive funding will provide community enterprise centres, as well as other enterprise players, with an opportunity to submit proposals for collaborative approaches to boost enterprise job creation across the regions.

Proposals and suggestions to make the scheme more comprehensive and run it more efficiently would be welcomed by the Department which is prepared to sit down with the Senator or interested parties and listen to any proposal. With the Minister and others, I would be delighted to talk to her, but the schemes are providing substantial employment, particularly for young entrepreneurs and in SMEs, with up to 1,300 companies employing 6,000 people. This is a small number in relative terms, but these are sustainable jobs and the number continues to increase.

Senator Catherine Noone

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. It is welcome that proposals and ideas for the scheme and in respect of particular areas would be welcomed. The bottom line in the example I have described is that a vast number of buildings would be empty under the scheme but for the work of the business manager who is earning €8,000 a year. We can all fully acknowledge that is not an appropriate sum for the woman in question who is community oriented. In a way, the scheme is taking advantage of her. However, her services are being availed of and they are fundamental to the efficacy of the business centre. I would like to speak to the Minister of State and, perhaps, the Minister about this case with a view to having a number of these centres throughout the country, which is what the Department no doubt intends in any case.

Deputy John Halligan

I would be delighted to meet the Senator to discuss the issue. The availability of business space is a fundamental infrastructural requirement for businesses to establish and expand in any location. A total of 117 community enterprise centres are located throughout the country and provide low cost workspace, with an array of services which often include centralised reception, messaging and broadband facilities and so on. The Senator has raised an interesting case and either the Minister or I will sit down with her as soon as she is available. If she wants to bring the individual involved with her, we would be delighted to meet her.

Enterprise Support Schemes

Senator Paul Gavan

I welcome the Minister of State. I also welcome representatives of ConnectIreland who have time to attend the Chamber this morning. The matter relates to ConnectIreland and the Global Irish Forum which was set up with great fanfare in 2011. There was a general feeling of goodwill towards this initiative because it made sense to use our global network to create jobs and rebuild the economy. In 2012 ConnectIreland secured a five-year contract for the Succeed in Ireland initiative. According to its figures, it has helped to create 2,411 jobs in the past three years and worked with 79 international companies in doing so. The organisation states it has a further 2,200 jobs lined up to be brought to Ireland in the future. Its literature outlines where the jobs will be located. It is impressive that it is bringing jobs to rural locations, as well as to Dublin. We all agree that rural locations badly need these jobs. Approximately 66% of the jobs are located in 15 counties outside Dublin. Most of the businesses have 20 employees or fewer and are a major boost for small towns and rural communities. According to a DKM Economic Consultants review, ConnectIreland has contributed an additional €123 million to Ireland's GDP so far which has resulted in a net benefit to the Exchequer of €26 million.

It is for these reasons that I am surprised that the Department has announced that the Succeed in Ireland scheme will not be renewed by IDA Ireland. Based on the evidence ConnectIreland has produced, why is the scheme being ended? The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation said it would be reviewed and that the Government would then consider whether it should continue. However, would it not make more sense to retain the scheme until the review is published and then decide whether to end it rather than ending it before the review is complete? The review could indicate a way in which the scheme could be further improved or even conclude that the scheme has been a success. According to ConnectIreland, there are several thousand jobs in the pipeline for rural communities which could potentially be thrown away if the scheme is not supported by IDA Ireland. The contacts built by ConnectIreland would also be lost. I am genuinely puzzled because this was a great idea and it looks like it is bearing significant fruit. As I live in rural Ireland, I particularly relate to the fact that small towns and villages are benefiting. I am concerned about what will happen to the jobs in the pipeline if the organisation closes summarily. It is a puzzle; therefore, I ask the Minister of State to comment on the future of ConnectIreland and the reason the scheme is being closed before the review has been completed and the findings examined.

Deputy John Halligan

I thank the Senator for his informative contribution. I also welcome the representatives of ConnectIreland. Again, I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation.

I emphasise that attracting foreign direct investment to Ireland, especially to rural Ireland, is a key priority of the Government. I very much appreciate the role foreign direct investment has played in our economic development, as does the Minister. That is why we are continuing to do our best to get more overseas companies to locate or expand here and create new employment opportunities. The Succeed in Ireland initiative which has been operated by ConnectIreland since 2012 has contributed to our wider national efforts to win more foreign direct investment and create jobs. I understand from IDA Ireland which oversees the programme that a total of 527 new positions have been created to date. These are the figures I have been given. Payments totalling €2.069 million have also been made to ConnectIreland as a financial reward for these positions.

As has been well documented, the initiative is set to conclude on 26 March. This is in accordance with the terms of a contract extension agreed jointly by IDA Ireland and ConnectIreland in March 2016. The purpose of the extension, into which both parties entered voluntarily, was to allow for an orderly wind-down of the original contract that underpinned the initiative. IDA Ireland has no plans in place to tender for the continuation of the programme, but I want to make it clear that no decision has yet been made on the ultimate future of the Succeed in Ireland initiative. Instead, we first want to assess the contribution and performance of the Succeed in Ireland initiative before a determination is made on how to proceed in the long term.

This represents a reasonable approach as we near the end of the contract. That is why a review of the programme will shortly be commissioned. I cannot supply a date, as I do not know when it will be, but the review is in the process of being commissioned. It will allow for a full assessment of the initiative's costs and employment impact and will help to inform our future approach.

I hope that I have clarified the situation in respect of the Succeed in Ireland initiative. Creating sustainable employment across Ireland will remain a core objective for the Government and me. No ultimate decision has been taken ahead of the upcoming review.

Senator Paul Gavan

I thank the Minister of State for his response and I appreciate that he is representing the Minister, Deputy Mitchell O'Connor, but a couple of points puzzle me. He stated that no ultimate decision had been taken, but one has been taken to close ConnectIreland. With all due respect, I cannot see the reasoning behind that. The closest that we have to an explanation is found in a previous statement by the Minister, where she said: "The experience of IDA Ireland in this area is unparalleled and we must be careful not to risk defusing expertise and awareness of multiple entities and governance arrangements." To be frank, I do not know what that means.

I stand to be corrected, as I do not always get my figures right, but I understand that the average cost of an IDA job is €11,000.

Deputy John Halligan

It is approximately €10,000, so the Senator is almost correct.

Senator Paul Gavan

The average cost of a ConnectIreland job is €4,000.

Deputy John Halligan

Correct.

Senator Paul Gavan

For the life of me, I cannot understand why it is being closed down. It has been successful. Given that there was clearly a divergence in the figures, surely the sensible course of action would have been to continue with ConnectIreland, understand where the divergence occurred and at that point decide on whether to continue the project or give the reasons for closing it. However, this situation seems shrouded in mystery. Are these people the victims of a division within the IDA because they might be showing the IDA up by delivering jobs at a lower cost?

Deputy John Halligan

The Senator will understand that I cannot comment on his last remark, as I do not know. My view, and that of the Department, is that conducting a review of the programme before we determine how to proceed is in the interests of good governance. It will help us to understand how ConnectIreland has functioned over the course of the past five years and equip us with a better understanding of its strong and weak points. Undertaking such a review is in the interests of the taxpayer, the State and the programme itself.

The Succeed in Ireland initiative is not necessarily ending. The intention is to conduct the review of performance and contribution and determine how we might proceed. I hope that, in the coming weeks, further meetings will take place between my Department, the Minister, who is the one dealing with this matter, and the IDA. That will probably happen.

The contract will end in March and it is only reasonable to expect that there should be some review, given the amount of taxpayers' money that has been invested in the project. We should see where we go from there. I have been directed to say by the Department that this does not necessarily mean that it will be the end of the programme. It is in the interests of good governance. If one entered into a contract with, for example, a company over a period of years and taxpayers' money was invested, it would be expected that a review would be undertaken before the next programme's future was determined. We must fully understand how the initiative has functioned - its strong and weak points - and take the matter from there. It is reasonable that we analyse and review the programme and push forward from there.

Sitting suspended at 11.25 a.m. and resumed at 11.30 a.m.