Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 21 June 2018
138. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation her plans and the plans of the industrial promotion agencies to assist in 2018 and 2019 in the maintenance of existing employment and in job creation throughout County Cavan; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27330/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, regional development is a key priority of mine and I am focused on maintaining existing jobs while also increasing the level of employment and investment in every county in Ireland, including Co. Cavan.
The North East/North West Regional Action Plan for Jobs is a key policy response for supporting employment growth in the Border region. The core objective of the Action Plan is to increase employment in the region by 10-15%, resulting in the delivery of 28,000 jobs by 2020. We are aiming to ensure the unemployment rate is within the 1% of the State average.
Some 12,000 jobs were created in the Border region since the regional Action Plans for Jobs initiative was launched in January 2015 while the unemployment rate in the Border region has fallen since then and now stands at 4.9% according to the CSO (Q4 2017).
Furthermore, Live Register numbers continue to fall in County Cavan, down from 7,793 in July 2012 to 3,655 in May 2018, a decrease of over 4,000. There is of course always room for improvement but the latest CSO figures are testament to the Government’s efforts to help create jobs and reduce unemployment.
I recently launched the second call of the Regional Enterprise Development Fund, which is aimed at supporting the development and implementation of collaborative and innovative projects that can sustain and add to employment at a national, regional and county level. I would encourage all entities, including in the Cavan region, to use this fund to support job creation. The closing date is 3pm on Thursday 28th June.
Twenty-one successful applicants representing all regions of the country have secured up to €30.5m for their projects in the first competitive call. Cavan County Council and LEO Cavan were successful in acquiring funding as part of the Upper Shannon Erne Future Economy Project under the first Enterprise Ireland Regional Enterprise Development Fund call, for the development of a Digital Hub Facility in Cavan.
Enterprise Ireland (EI) together with the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) play a critical role in driving and nurturing entrepreneurship all the way from an originating idea at local level, to taking-on global markets. In 2017, EI paid €2.5m to companies in Cavan.
Total employment in EI supported companies in Co. Cavan now stands at 5,451, an increase of 28% since 2012. In May, EI facilitated a meeting of LEO and EI engineering companies from Cavan, Louth and Meath with a view to creating an engineering cluster in the region.
The Local Enterprise Office (LEO) Cavan serves as the first stop shop to provide strategic, technical and financial supports and services to start, grow and develop small businesses in each county.
Some specific supports LEO Cavan provides for the development of existing indigenous businesses include the LEAN for Micro programme, Technical Assistance Grants for Micro Exporters and the Co-Innovate Programme. In July 2018, LEO Cavan is delivering a number of workshops and information seminars to assist local businesses with accessing these supports and guiding them towards growing their businesses by exploring export markets, trading online opportunities, innovation projects, cross border research and development collaborations and trade partnerships.
Last year LEO Cavan created 207 new jobs. They provided training to 1,293 clients and mentoring to 91 clients.
Regarding foreign investment, Cavan has seven multinational companies employing 1,555 people. The county maintains an impressive base of FDI with companies such as CG Power Systems, Wellman International and Gyproc St. Gobain. We are making significant progress towards achieving our regional development targets, which include a 30% to 40% increase in FDI in the North-East Region by 2019.
Finally, in relation to Brexit, my Department and its agencies are carrying out extensive work to prepare for all eventualities. I was delighted to attend and speak at the Enterprise Ireland and InterTradeIreland Brexit Advisory Clinic in Cootehill, Cavan in March of this year. These clinics provide the opportunity for companies that may be affected by Brexit to take immediate action to address their exposure.
