Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I ask him to send us the most recent information available. The area I come from tends to get lost as the region is unusual. I do not have a full fix. The IDA does not know my county exists but Enterprise Ireland is a little better in this regard and I would like to see its information.

I had a look through the accounts this morning and last night. Page 57 details the income and expenditure for the year. The largest item in the accounts is financial support to industry, which was €194 million in 2011. The corresponding figure for the previous year was €294 million, so this represents a drop of more than €100 million at a time when one would have hoped support to industry would have been at its highest. This is referred to in the notes to the account. The biggest drop is in the employment subsidy scheme. According to note (a) on page 63, the scheme ended in 2011. I would have thought that if any scheme should have been continued from 2011 onwards, it was an employment subsidy scheme to support the retention of full-time or part-time jobs and viable enterprises which might otherwise be lost as result of the impact of the global and financial recession. To see a cutback of more than €100 million under this heading is extraordinary at a time when we need to protect jobs. One can talk about start-ups and innovation but the most important thing is to hold onto what we have. I am amazed there was a cut of almost 50% in funding in an area I would say deals with job retention. Will Mr. Ryan explain why this is and where we are going in terms of job retention, given that there has been such a drop-off in this area?

I am confused by an entry on page 56 with regard to a contribution to the Exchequer of €34 million during the course of the year. This is detailed in note 10 on page 68, where it is described as excess proceeds over the amount accounted for in the Government Book of Estimates. Enterprise Ireland is handing back approximately €30 million. Ministers fight hard for allocations for organisations such as Enterprise Ireland. I find it mind-boggling. The subsidy for employment for existing companies is being cut by €100 million while money is being handed back to the Government. Could the €30 million handed back to the Government have been used for job retention? These figures stick out as going in opposite directions and I ask Mr. Ryan for a comment.