Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 May 2015
14. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Finance his plans for the expansion of the international banking sector outside of the greater Dublin region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17378/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI should point out that significant numbers, almost 12,000, are employed in international services related roles outside the greater Dublin region in locations such as Kerry, Cork, Donegal, Limerick, Kilkenny, Waterford and Shannon. As part of the implementation of the IFS 2020 strategy for the financial services sector more investment and employment will be located outside the greater Dublin region.
The Government launched IFS 2020 on 11 March 2015 which is the new strategy for Ireland's international financial services sector. The new strategy is an action oriented approach to growing and developing the financial services industry in Ireland. The aim is to improve the level of foreign financial services investment and to encourage the growth of more domestic financial services companies including those providing financial technology services. The new strategy was developed to cope with a changing financial services and technological environment, greater international competition and changing consumer preferences in the delivery of financial services products. The five priority areas identified
- promotion and branding
- improving the competitive environment
- supporting research, innovation and entrepreneurship (particularly Fin Tech)
- exploring the emerging sector opportunities and
- the implementation process
are I believe key to the success of the strategy. Clearly the ultimate point of the strategy is job creation. Working with the IDA and Enterprise Ireland the aim is to create an additional 10,000 jobs in IFS firms over the lifetime of the strategy. I consider this is achievable over the lifetime of IFS 2020. It is expected that those jobs in turn will create a virtuous circle, underlining Ireland's attractiveness to the financial services sector, and contributing to the wider recovery now under way.
