Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 April 2024
29. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment for a report on the implementation of the north-east regional enterprise plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16909/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraBalanced regional enterprise development is a key focus for me and this Government as reaffirmed in the White Paper on Enterprise. My Department contributes to this agenda in several ways, including through the development, implementation and oversight of nine Regional Enterprise Plans (REPs).
The North-East REP is implemented at a regional level by a Steering Committee made up of stakeholders from Cavan, Louth and Monaghan. Richard Hanlon is Chair of the North-East REP Steering Committee which last met on 15 September 2023. The Programme Manager position in the North-East has been vacant for over a year which has impacted implementation. My officials are engaging with the local authorities in the region to resolve this as a matter of priority.
My Department oversees implementation of the REPs at the national level. A meeting of the National Oversight Group for the REPs with Steering Committee Chairpersons is planned for Thursday 25 April, where implementation across all REPs will be discussed.
Nine REP Mid-Term Progress Reports were recently published, which document implementation to the end of Q3 2023 for each plan, including the North-East. These reports were prepared by each regional Steering Committee and are available on my Department’s website.
Some highlights detailed in the Progress Report include:
• a successful cross-border collaboration among five local authorities, securing funding from the Shared Island Initiative to foster heightened ambition and cross-border cooperation.
• €50,000 was secured under the Regional Enterprise Innovation Scoping Scheme (REISS) feasibility grant to assess the challenges and opportunities faced by enterprises across the region in the transition to a low carbon economy.
• Dundalk Institute of Technology, utilising its affiliation with the North-East REP, developed a Level 7 Diploma in Operational Excellence for Supply Chain Management.
As the Deputy will be aware, my Department has secured up to €145 million for the Smart Regions Enterprise Innovation Scheme to support projects aligned to the REPs. This builds on the €126 million my Department has already allocated in regional enterprise funding. The North-East has performed very well under these funding schemes securing over €22 million in approved funding for 13 innovative enterprise projects.
The first call of €35 million under the new scheme, which is co-funded under the European Regional Development Fund, is now open on the Enterprise Ireland website. I expect that there will be up to four calls under this fund over the coming years and I encourage innovative projects from the North-East to apply.
