Mr. Tom Hayes:

I will refer to the CECs. To give a bit of background, we had four schemes and have invested €46 million or €47 million in 117 centres that are now operational. As the chief executive stated, they have created 9,000 jobs, with a little over 6,000 people in full-time employment in 1,200 companies. A little over two years ago, we introduced a business manager development scheme. Some 46 managers have been recruited for those centres - 37 in 2012 and nine in 2013. Interestingly, the centres with business development managers employ on average approximately twice the number of people as centres without managers do. We are reviewing the programme, which has concluded. No funding is going into the CECs currently but, with our parent Department, we are trying to decide what the next phase for helping them should be. They play a major role, particularly in rural areas of high unemployment where the incubation centres found in urban environments are not present.

We reviewed 21 of the centres with business development managers. In 2012, they had 354 companies. In 2013, they had 427 companies. In 2014, we forecast they will have almost 500 companies. Likewise, those 21 centres have seen a significant increase in job numbers, from 1,685 in 2012 to 1,722 in 2013 and 1,847 so far in 2014. Undoubtedly, there is a strong correlation between CECs having business development managers and the number of clients and jobs for which they account. We are encouraged by these figures. Financial constraints permitting, we hope to introduce a new scheme to help in areas that are not well serviced by infrastructural supports.