Áine Collins (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister and his officials. Considering what those in Europe are doing in examining the CSR, is it possible for us to examine some sort of regional funding in Ireland? While Dublin is doing very well, some parts of the country are still struggling, in particular rural Ireland, and perhaps in some counties we could consider having a county fund. I would appreciate an update on the mentoring issue, as it is also a key element of promoting entrepreneurship.

We had representatives of the credit unions in last week and they indicated they had €8 billion which they were willing to invest in the SME sector. Perhaps we could find a way for the State to underwrite that, say over a five year period. Is that something we could consider?