I propose to take Questions Nos. 113 to 116, inclusive, and No. 121 together.
When approving financial assistance for a company, IDA Ireland enters into a legal and binding contract with the company. The contract, which is confidential between IDA Ireland and the company, includes conditions and milestones that the company is required to comply with before any financial assistance is paid. In order to draw down grants, a company must meet the performance targets as set out in the contract. IDA Ireland pays grants pro rata with achieved performance. Companies sign a grant agreement in full knowledge that the penalty for non-performance is pro rata repayment of the grant. In cases where companies have not achieved the agreed performance target or, in the event of a company closure, IDA Ireland will seek to recover the grants paid. The total amount of grants refunded for each of the years 2007 to 2011 are included in the financial statements in IDA Ireland’s Annual Report which are available on the Agency’s website www.idaireland.com.
IDA Ireland has approximately 1,000 client companies, not all of which have received financial assistance. I am arranging to forward to the Deputy a list of all IDA client companies who have received grant payments in the period 2007 to 2011. Information in relation to grant approvals is confidential to the client and IDA. Details of IDA Ireland’s investment announcements, including potential job numbers since 2007, are available on the IDA website. The number of actual jobs created for the year 2012 will not be available until after the Forfás employment survey is conducted in November of this year.