Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 October 2018
8. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation if she is satisfied with the take-up rate for business Brexit supports provided by her Department and agencies to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42563/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraIs the Minister satisfied with the take-up rate of Brexit business supports provided by her Department and agencies to date? The Minister is very familiar with the Border area. There is no doubt that we need to be very proactive in addressing this matter. It is all very well making supports available but small and medium sized businesses, which are always under pressure in any case, must have the ability to access them. They must be given resources to enable them to make formal applications. We need to reduce the burden of red tape around access to supports.
I thank Deputy Kelleher for raising this matter. My Department and its agencies are providing extensive supports to ensure that businesses are prepared for Brexit. These supports aim to assist businesses in identifying key risk areas and the practical preparatory actions to be taken over the coming months.
For 2019, I am allocating an extra €8 million to the enterprise agencies and regulatory bodies under my Department, which work with firms to develop their supports for business. I have also allocated an additional €5 million to the local enterprise offices, LEOs, for 2019 to increase their Brexit supports to businesses in every county.
The level of uptake of these supports shows that businesses are aware of the assistance on offer and are engaging with various initiatives and schemes that have been made available. A September 2017 survey reported that 38% of Enterprise Ireland clients surveyed had taken Brexit actions. In May 2018, this figure increased to 85% of Enterprise Ireland client companies surveyed. The survey reported that Enterprise Ireland client companies are taking action in areas such as market diversification; developing strategic partnerships; improving operational competitiveness; improving financial management; and strengthening business in the UK. This is a positive indication that companies are preparing for Brexit.
The Enterprise Ireland Brexit small and medium enterprises, SME, scorecard is an interactive online platform which can be used by all Irish companies to self-assess their exposure to Brexit. To date, 2,962 Brexit scorecards have been completed. The Be Prepared grant, also available through Enterprise Ireland, offers SME clients a grant of up to €5,000 to assist them in preparing an action plan for economic shocks such as Brexit. The grant can be used to help cover consultancy, travel and travel expenses associated with researching the direction of their action plan. A total of 137 Be Prepared grants have so far been approved.
Enterprise Ireland has run eight Brexit advisory clinics throughout the country to date. Approximately 590 people have attended these events and three more clinics are due to take place before the end of the year in Dundalk, Waterford and Limerick.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
The local enterprise offices have organised various events to enable companies to learn about the potential impacts and opportunities of Brexit, and 3,925 participants have taken part in these events. In addition, 263 LEO clients have received one-to-one mentoring solely focused on Brexit. The LEOs also engage in a number of other schemes to help companies prepare for Brexit. Technical assistance grants for micro export are offered as an incentive for LEO clients to explore and develop new market opportunities and 293 clients have been approved so far for this scheme.
The Brexit loan scheme, launched in March this year, makes a fund of up to €300 million available to eligible businesses to help them innovate, change or adapt to mitigate their Brexit challenge. So far, there have been 262 applications to the scheme, with 224 approved by the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland.
InterTradeIreland's Brexit advisory service was established in May 2017 to provide a focal point for SMEs working to navigate the changes in cross-Border trading relationships brought about by Brexit negotiations. To date, the Brexit advisory service has engaged directly with more than 2,350 SMEs in Ireland through the various elements of the service. I have allocated an additional €1 million to InterTradeIreland for 2019 to increase the impact of its Brexit support for businesses. I am encouraged by the fact that businesses are engaging in high numbers with these supports. It shows that many businesses are taking the required steps of gathering information and preparing Brexit contingency plans.
We are still unsure as to where we are going with Brexit and what the final outcome will be. The UK will depart the European Union but how it departs is an issue being debated elsewhere at the moment. While Brexit will have a profound impact on businesses in the Republic of Ireland, it will have massive implications for businesses along the Border and their efficiencies.
Enterprise Ireland's Be Prepared grant scheme is being awarded at the rate of six firms per month. InterTradeIreland's Start to Plan vouchers are also being awarded at a rate of six firms per month. This is a poor uptake. If, as the Minister said, the schemes are being rolled out but not being taken up by companies, there is a problem somewhere. Are the schemes too complex? Are companies unaware of them? Is enough effort being made to promote them among organisations? This issue must be addressed. We need to be prepared and réidh.
We are providing an array of different supports to businesses across Departments and agencies. Ultimately, businesses have to decide themselves if they want to avail of those supports. I am not getting any indication from the businesses I meet that the schemes are too complicated or that we need to simplify them to make them more accessible. I am not hearing that. I consistently ask businesses to take the short time needed to assess what their risks are with regard to Brexit. They can do that simply using the Brexit scorecard, which is available online. There are a range of supports available. I am from the Border region and I am very conscious of the impact Brexit would have on the Border areas and on businesses on both sides of the Border. Businesses cross over and trade over the Border every day and they are concerned about Brexit. I have increased the budget for the cross-Border body, InterTradeIreland, by 18% or €1 million. This will allow the agency to further increase its supports to businesses. The local enterprise offices have received another €5 million, which will allow them to reach out to more businesses and help them to become Brexit prepared.
I thank the Minister. I acknowledge that she is keenly aware of this issue given the area in which she resides and which she represents. We have to ensure, however, that there are no obstacles or impediments placed in front of business during this very difficult time for companies throughout the country, but predominantly in the Border region. One of the reasons there may not be a big uptake of the supports by businesses is that there is considerable uncertainty about where Brexit will lead us and what will be the final outcome. The negotiations to date are uncertain and have not provided timelines. This places businesses in a difficult position in terms of how they plan. Many small businesses are under pressure and find it difficult to plan for the long term when they are struggling with cashflow difficulties on a daily or weekly basis as they try to win orders just to keep the business going. Long-term planning can be very difficult for those businesses. Whatever has to be done must be done. I hope the organisations and agencies available to the Minister through the State, such as Enterprise Ireland and InterTradeIreland, will understand and support businesses.
When I meet businesses I am asked what we are preparing for. I tell them to consider the worst-case scenario and identify and mitigate the risks. The Government is negotiating for the best possible outcome but we need businesses to prepare by considering the worst-case scenario. The working capital Brexit loan scheme is to help businesses with cashflow difficulties. Under a cross-Government awareness campaign, Getting Ireland Brexit Ready, events have already been held in Cork and Galway. One event is planned for Monaghan tomorrow and a further event is planned for Dublin. These roadshows have attracted significant interest. All of the agencies are represented at the workshops to help people and to give them information on the Brexit supports that are available. These important roadshows are being held throughout the State and people should attend them. I understand the events in Cork and Galway were extremely well attended, and considerable interest has already been shown for the event planned for Dublin. We are doing everything we can to make businesses aware and to encourage them to put in place plans to prepare for Brexit.
