Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Will the Minister elaborate for the committee? It is a radical departure for small businesses. The sector is in flux, given the closure of bank branches in a number of rural areas and the difficulties in accessing credit. Will the State have a greater input in terms of the provision of credit and what will become the natural equilibrium?

I have raised a point about State aid with the Minister a number of times. It needs to be designed to provide some level of incentive for foreign direct investment, FDI, and indigenous businesses to locate in disadvantaged areas or areas that are not as developed as others. Most FDI jobs are found within the Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway regions at a level far in excess of the Minister's targets.

The Minister mentioned that the experience with regard to State aid would be relatively flat. How does this help his strategy in regionalising FDI into the future? Also, how will this affect our competitiveness vis-a-visother countries and their foreign direct investment initiatives?