Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I presume Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong are to an extent. We do not have a number but I will get it. Deputy Anthony Lawlor makes a good point. We have tried to have a compendium of what is available across our agencies but the point is well made that Enterprise Ireland could have a simpler source document for the uninitiated as to what is available. Many of these schemes have developed names which are great if one knows them and they mean something if one knows them. If one does not know them and sees the name they do not mean anything. One of the things we are doing this year, not just across my Department but across the wider Government, is to have a communications strategy to make it easier for people to access. The creation of the local enterprise offices will be a part of that. I will invite the Minister of State, Deputy John Perry, in on that issue.

The local enterprise office is innovative in trying to start a first-stop-shop for everyone and local government will bring in its business service units. Therefore, there will be integration of the business service units of the local authority with the local enterprise offices. We are protecting the resource of the enterprise offices and adding the resources of the local authority. We hope it will be a bigger resource as well as doing new things. LEOs funding, which I supplied already, comes directly from the Department's Vote.

In 2012, venture capital provided €80 million in funding across 140 companies. That has been a significant improvement on previous years and it is performing better. I would hope that the 2013 figures, when they become available, will show a continuation of that trend. They will not be available until later in the year.