Written Answers Nos. 226-235
226. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation what financial set of accounts relevant period and so on the High Court looked at when giving permission to a company (details supplied) to be wound down with a loss of all jobs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15274/16]
Amharc ar fhreagra227. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the role that a company (details supplied) was to play when it took over another company (details supplied) as a going concern, when in fact it was winding down the company within six months due to significant losses of €5 million up to June 2015, which was prior to the takeover; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15275/16]
Amharc ar fhreagra228. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if her Department was aware, through IDA Ireland, of a company's (details supplied) €5 million losses prior to a company's (details supplied) takeover of the company in 2015, as this was stated by a director of a company in the High Court as the reason why the company should be allowed to wind down a company; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15276/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 226 to 228, inclusive, together.
In situations such as this, the legal process for the appointment of a liquidator is fully prescribed in statute and a matter entirely for the Courts. My Department therefore has neither a direct role in proceedings nor any involvement with the legal documentation that may be lodged.
When a company acquires another undertaking in Ireland, the financial details of such transactions – or the corporate strategies of the businesses involved – are not generally shared with my Department or its Agencies. That was also the case in this instance.
On many occasions when company takeovers occur there is a positive outcome for the businesses and employees involved. Unfortunately that was not the result in the case in question. My Department and its Agencies will, however, do the utmost to find new investors for the region and employment opportunities for those who have lost their jobs.
229. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation to outline the amount of funding that will be allocated on a county per county basis under the local enterprise offices competitive fund, in tabular form, following the Enterprise Ireland announcement on 1 June 2016; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15278/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Local Enterprise Office (LEO) Competitive Fund is targeted at collaborative initiatives between LEOs aimed at fostering increased collaboration, networking and a joined-up approach to national, regional and local micro-enterprise capability building, growth and job creation.
A table details the collaborative projects that have been approved for funding, together with the LEO project partners, project description and the amounts approved.
|
Partner LEO / Others |
Project Description |
Amount Approved |
|
LEOs Wicklow, Tipperary, Wexford, Carlow, Kilkenny and other private and public partners |
Consolidate a creative hub in the South Eastern region through an extensive networking and training programme for established SMEs and Start Ups servicing the creative industries. |
€250,000 |
|
LEOs Cork North & West, Cork South, Cork City, Kerry and other private and public partners |
Develop a Graduate Programme, placing high performing graduates in micro enterprises for a 12 month accredited assignment in order to support the accelerated growth of the hosting business. The placement will form part of existing Masters Programmes and will span a range of disciplines. |
€220,000 |
|
LEOs Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Cavan, Monaghan and Louth, and Enterprise Ireland |
ACCELINVEST will be to create a clear pathway for export focused, investment-ready regional companies to progress from the LEO Network to Enterprise Ireland. |
€175,000 |
|
LEOs Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford, Kilkenny and Carlow |
A South East Artisan Food initiative to establish a cluster of fledgling food exporters across 5 counties and develop the export capability of a selection of artisan food clients |
€120,000 |
|
LEOs Kilkenny, Carlow, Wicklow and other private partners |
The EMBARK Programme will proactively prepare small businesses, identified by the LEOs as having potential for growth and export, to exploit new export opportunities. |
€34,890 |
|
LEOs Mayo, Roscommon, Galway and other private and public partners |
iFactory West aims to scale up 30 companies with growth potential across the West region through an intensive innovation programme suited to their individual needs. |
€194,550 |
|
LEOs Wexford, Waterford, Wicklow, Tipperary, Carlow, Kilkenny, Kildare and Laois |
A pilot programme that will offer carefully selected micro-enterprises with growth ambitions the opportunity to benefit from concentrated support from the dedicated advisory panel of 3 experts per enterprise. |
€50,000 |
|
LEOs Westmeath, Laois, Offaly and Longford |
The Midlands Engineering Cluster Programme is a structured programme of market-led innovation, best practice transfer and product and trade development. It will create a new synergy between engineering enterprises; educational institutions and support agencies in the region that will aid their sustainability. |
€118,000 |
|
LEOs Fingal, Dublin City, South Dublin, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown and other public partners |
This project is targeted at the Dublin food producer cohort and focuses on the creation of an online video education platform to enhance knowledge, improve skill sets and develop producer competencies. |
€157,600 |
|
LEOs Offaly, Westmeath, Longford and Laois |
The Midlands One to Two Growth Initiative will break down inherent job creation obstacles by assisting carefully selected solo entrepreneurs from across the Midlands in overcoming the legal, regulatory and administrative barriers to adopting employer status, thus stimulating new employment creation and business expansion. |
€62,045 |
|
LEO Sligo, Donegal and other private and public partners |
The programme is aimed at two particular cohorts of businesses, i.e. existing LEO clients and artisan producers trading in farmers’ markets and other similar early stage niches. The main objectives of the programme will be to increase the business potential and expertise of promoters, to foster innovation and know-how, increase turnover and sales and to equip participants to trade in new markets. |
€27,000 |
|
LEO Tipperary, Wicklow and other private and public partners |
Develop a strong Digital Media and Gaming corridor linking the Mid-West and the South & East Regions, building on existing strengths, heighten awareness of the potential of the creative industries and assist in diversifying the current employment base. |
€47,740 |
|
LEOs Leitrim, Cavan, Roscommon, Longford and other private and public partners |
The Graduate Internship for Entrepreneurship Programme. Through this programme, graduates will be connected with full-time, paid internship centred on a two way skills transfer – graduates will transfer new skills and approaches, employers will transfer entrepreneurial learning and experience of running/managing a business. |
€146,648 |
|
LEOs Leitrim, Cavan, Longford Roscommon and other private and public partners |
This initiative will provide the opportunity for shared learning, dynamic trade development and knowledge transfer in the creative sector which will result in job creation and greater sustainability of the often challenged creative sector with a specific emphasis on the craft sector. |
€70,700 |
|
LEOs Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford, Carlow, Kilkenny and other private and public partners |
This programme will explore the potential for higher levels of innovation, entrepreneurship, and productivity in agricultural technology (AgTech) |
€25,000 |
|
LEO Galway, Mayo, Roscommon and other private and public partners |
This will create a gateway to the lucrative London market for West-based micro food and drinks enterprises, through a shared co-operation logistics and market development model. |
€214,500 |
230. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation to outline the amount of funding that will be allocated on a county per county basis under the community enterprise initiative, in tabular form, following the Enterprise Ireland announcement on 1 June 2016; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15279/16]
Amharc ar fhreagra118 applications for the Community Enterprise Initiative Competitive Fund were considered with a total value of €12.3m. There was strong demand for the funding and the process was highly competitive with a threshold mark of 60 to be reached to be successful. The primary criteria and basis for marking the applications were:
- Representation of community interests
- Financial need and viability/Value For Money
- Employment creation prospects
- Collaboration
- Future prospects/sustainability
32 applications exceeded the threshold, following assessment by an external assessor and Committee adjudication and approval by Enterprise Ireland. The value of the successful projects amounted to €3.06m.
The amount of funding that is being offered to individual projects under the Community Enterprise Initiative involves, in certain cases, commercially sensitive issues and must therefore remain confidential. For that reason, it is not possible to give the amount of funding on a county per county basis. In line with existing protocols, Enterprise Ireland will list what it has actually paid to individual entities as part of the Enterprise Ireland Annual Report.
Due to the high demand, Enterprise Ireland will issue a further call for proposals in Quarter 3 this year. This new call will be open to those that may have been unsuccessful under the first call for proposals and also to new applicants. Enterprise Ireland will work with all applicants that apply for funding under the second call for proposals.
I will engage closely with Enterprise Ireland to continue to roll out a series of new competitive regional funding initiatives that deliver on the potential of local and regional strengths; and promote collaboration among the various public and private interests to create new enterprises and jobs.
231. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her views on the recent hike in baggage fees by Irish airlines; her further views that the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission should investigate these increases; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15281/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraI understand that the increase in baggage fees applied by one of the Irish airlines is not a new price rise as such but rather an increase in baggage fees that applies annually during the peak summer holiday period. The other Irish airline has revised its fee structure for baggage replacing a large number of different fees with seasonal variations with six year-round fee bands based on the destination and duration of flights and the weight of the baggage. While the airline claims that the revised fee structure will lead to reduced baggage charges for most passengers, I am aware that other commentators have questioned this claim. As the Deputy will be aware, no Government in recent decades has pursued a policy of price control other than for a very small number of regulated sectors where normal competitive conditions do not obtain. I do not propose to depart from this policy. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s role is to ensure that markets are competitive and not to regulate prices. According to the most recent Consumer Price Index figures released by the Central Statistics Office, air fares fell by 8.4 per cent in the year to April 2016. While increases in baggage charges will clearly affect some passengers, they should also be viewed in the light of the overall reduction in air fares over the past year.
232. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the contingencies her Department has in place should the United Kingdom vote to leave the European Union in the upcoming referendum regarding Irish jobs and trade; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15282/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe EU-UK question is a strategic priority for Government, and for my Department. This is because UK membership of the Union is hugely important both to Ireland’s interests, and to the interests of a stable, successful and prosperous EU as a whole. The Government’s overriding focus has been, and remains, on helping to keep the UK in the Union, not preparing for its departure. Work has been underway across Government Departments, including my own, for some time to ensure we best understand the range of issues at stake.
The Department of the Taoiseach also plays a leading role, given the whole-of-government dimension that is essential in this work. In this context, in May of last year, a unit was established in the Department of the Taoiseach, specifically dealing with British-Irish and Northern Ireland affairs.
The Department of Finance, for example, commissioned the research published last November by the Economic and Social Research Institute on Irish-British macroeconomic links in the context of our joint EU membership.
We know from this and various other published assessments that there are very significant strategic and economic risks for Ireland if the UK were to leave the EU. In order to mitigate these risks, the Government played a constructive role in the negotiations that took place at EU level, including in the context of the discussions leading up to the European Council in February, working with the British Government and all our EU partners towards a consensual basis for the UK’s continued membership of the Union.
Given the importance to the enterprise sector of this issue, both IDA and Enterprise Ireland are factoring this issue into their own contingency planning and continue to track where potential impacts may arise.
Clearly, the pace at which any potential exit was achieved, and the terms which the UK might negotiate with the EU across a wide range of domains will be a key determinant of the impact on the economy, and on jobs and trade in particular sectors. My Department would of course continue to work closely with colleagues in the UK and EU Member States to ensure that any potential disruption to trade and investment is minimised.
Enterprise Ireland already has a significant number of programmes available to companies who face competitive threats from various sources. There include Lean Programmes, Market Diversification, Innovation and Management Development. These will be the tools available to assist companies with planning and preparation.
Further, a key policy priority in recent years both for my Department and for Enterprise Ireland has been to support geographic market diversification, so that Irish owned exports to non-UK markets increase by 50% to reach exports of between €5 and €6 billion by 2020.
As a result, both Service and Manufacturing firms exports have shown a clear reduction in dependency on the UK market. A growing number of Enterprise Ireland supported exporters are exporting to more than five countries - an indication of a strengthening resilience in market diversity terms. In 2014, 41.8% of EI assisted exporting firms exported to more than five countries compared to 33% in 2009.
233. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the total value of drawdowns issued under the credit guarantee scheme on 31 December 2014 and 31 December 2015; the total value of approvals on same dates; to provide a county breakdown of each drawdown and approval; the reasons for the delay in the legislation to review the scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15283/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe breakdown of loan approvals by participating lenders and accepted by borrowers under the Credit Guarantee Scheme are collected and collated on a regional basis and are listed in a table. I welcome the increased levels of activity between December 2014 and December 2015 which is delivering much needed finance to our SMEs. The total drawdown figure at end of December 2015 was €16,010m.
It is not possible to provide a breakdown for loans where the borrower has not yet consented to data sharing. For this reason, it is not possible to provide details of individual drawdowns due to data protection issues.
Quarterly Reports providing full details of the latest Credit Guarantee Scheme performance are published on my Department’s website.
Since inception my Department has kept a close watch on the performance of the Credit Guarantee Scheme. In the light of less than satisfactory outcomes after the first 2 years of operation a review was conducted which proposed a range of changes to the operation of the legislation.
While it took some time to finalise the legal texts to implement the proposed changes involving complex negotiations with the Attorney General’s office a new Credit Guarantee Scheme Bill was passed in February 2016.
My officials are currently working to give effect to the revised legislation and to further increase the availability of credit to SMEs utilising the revised terms and product range.
|
Region |
Value of Approvals at 31st December 2014 |
Value of Approvals at 31st December 2015 |
|
East (Dublin, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow) |
€7,983,000 |
€19,192,000 |
|
South West (Cork and Kerry) |
€2,178,400 |
€2,770,000 |
|
South East (Waterford, Wexford, Carlow, Kilkenny and South Tipperary) |
€1,953,000 |
€3,053,000 |
|
Midlands (Laois, Longford, Offaly, Roscommon, and Westmeath) |
€1,497,000 |
€2,143,950 |
|
West (Galway and Mayo) |
€644,600 |
€1,804,600 |
|
Mid West (Limerick, Clare and North Tipperary) |
€1,382,844 |
€5,080,344 |
|
North West (Donegal, Sligo and Leitrim) |
€57,000 |
€147,000 |
|
North East (Cavan, Louth and Monaghan) |
€355,000 |
€500,000 |
|
Total |
€16,050,844 |
€34,690,894 |
Breakdown of loan approvals under the Credit Guarantee Scheme by Region
234. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the total value of drawdowns issued under the microfinance scheme on 31 December 2014 and on 31 December 2015; the total value of approvals on the same dates; to provide a county breakdown of each drawdown and approval; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15284/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe total number of applications received by Microfinance Ireland (MFI) from its inception to 31st December 2014 was 887. The figure to 31st December 2015 was 1,639. The value of approvals for the time periods totalled €6.318 million (413 in number) up to end December 2014 and €11.696 million (770 in number) up to end December 2015. Total value of drawdowns to end December 2014 was €5.716 million (346 in number) and to end December 2015 was €9.920 million (665 in number). The county spread of approvals is contained in each Quarterly Report provided by Microfinance Ireland to my Department. These are published and available on both Microfinance Ireland’s and my Department’s websites. For ease of reference I have extracted the county breakdown of approvals from the latest Quarterly Report up until end of March 2016 and this is detailed in a table.
Details of individual loan applications and approvals are subject to data protection legislation and it will not be possible to provide information on same.
|
County |
Received |
Approved |
County |
Received |
Approved |
|
Dublin |
415 |
196 |
Clare |
49 |
24 |
|
Cork |
157 |
70 |
Laois |
49 |
21 |
|
Limerick |
92 |
42 |
Louth |
46 |
17 |
|
Meath |
90 |
42 |
Westmeath |
46 |
21 |
|
Tipperary |
76 |
33 |
Longford |
40 |
13 |
|
Galway |
71 |
38 |
Roscommon |
38 |
21 |
|
Wexford |
66 |
33 |
Sligo |
38 |
27 |
|
Cavan |
66 |
32 |
Monaghan |
36 |
12 |
|
Kildare |
62 |
34 |
Carlow |
35 |
17 |
|
Waterford |
61 |
28 |
Donegal |
34 |
17 |
|
Wicklow |
60 |
30 |
Kilkenny |
33 |
15 |
|
Kerry |
52 |
23 |
Offaly |
32 |
14 |
|
Mayo |
51 |
33 |
Leitrim |
31 |
14 |
Total Applications Received 1826
Total Applications Approved 867
235. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the total value of drawdowns issued by each local enterprise office, LEO, on 31 December 2014 and on 31 December 2015; the total value of approvals on the same dates; to provide a LEO-by-LEO breakdown of each drawdown and approval; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15285/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraDetails of the amounts approved and paid out by the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) at end 2014 and 2015 are set out in a table. Once a project application is approved, funding can then be drawn down by the client over a specified period of time in accordance with appropriate terms and conditions set out by the LEO. There is no direct correlation between approvals and payments in a particular year. The approvals are the amounts approved for projects in the year in question and can be drawn down that year or in subsequent years and the paid amounts can represent drawdowns against the approvals in the year in question or in previous years.
|
2014 |
2015 |
|||
|
LEO |
Approved Amount |
Paid Amount |
Approved Amount |
Paid Amount |
|
Carlow |
€417,000 |
€340,671 |
€362,771 |
€195,636 |
|
Cavan |
€388,500 |
€291,113 |
€377,000 |
€303,796 |
|
Clare |
€376,800 |
€248,130 |
€563,300 |
€351,182 |
|
Cork City |
€435,660 |
€191,744 |
€466,580 |
€199,041 |
|
Cork North & West |
€418,070 |
€237,217 |
€583,126 |
€298,678 |
|
Cork South |
€730,499 |
€544,017 |
€556,119 |
€425,156 |
|
Donegal |
€325,503 |
€374,693 |
€264,575 |
€233,088 |
|
Dublin City |
€1,024,750 |
€686,859 |
€1,024,654 |
€602,065 |
|
Dublin Dún Laoghaire Rathdown |
€552,514 |
€501,815 |
€639,042 |
€390,449 |
|
Dublin Fingal |
€769,450 |
€502,520 |
€766,478 |
€698,616 |
|
South Dublin |
€641,268 |
€331,265 |
€552,532 |
€375,977 |
|
Galway |
€384,110 |
€252,543 |
€488,479 |
€223,870 |
|
Kerry |
€306,026 |
€259,524 |
€536,125 |
€285,394 |
|
Kildare |
€285,325 |
€240,568 |
€597,053 |
€214,422 |
|
Kilkenny |
€467,708 |
€454,276 |
€436,990 |
€243,868 |
|
Laois |
€237,125 |
€185,410 |
€251,825 |
€244,659 |
|
Leitrim |
€235,785 |
€235,700 |
€164,606 |
€213,628 |
|
Limerick |
€806,385 |
€529,955 |
€808,362 |
€725,223 |
|
Longford |
€200,500 |
€241,048 |
€301,000 |
€182,677 |
|
Louth |
€307,472 |
€225,203 |
€356,877 |
€195,023 |
|
Mayo |
€454,506 |
€395,950 |
€493,585 |
€279,505 |
|
Meath |
€297,265 |
€143,098 |
€315,322 |
€166,085 |
|
Monaghan |
€435,269 |
€297,140 |
€388,198 |
€208,518 |
|
Offaly |
€340,313 |
€327,183 |
€396,702 |
€292,979 |
|
Roscommon |
€284,741 |
€384,281 |
€235,997 |
€225,659 |
|
Sligo |
€364,168 |
€389,040 |
€305,777 |
€170,702 |
|
Tipperary |
€934,885 |
€397,008 |
€867,134 |
€686,295 |
|
Waterford |
€614,646 |
€593,155 |
€633,900 |
€396,950 |
|
Westmeath |
€412,847 |
€300,332 |
€433,787 |
€321,587 |
|
Wexford |
€375,221 |
€347,588 |
€406,798 |
€303,780 |
|
Wicklow |
€534,258 |
€482,945 |
€448,686 |
€393,945 |
