Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

On the theme of the advance sites, will the Minister outline to the committee the criteria the Department or the agency followed in identifying the locations year on year? Were the sites identified in the existing portfolio of State-owned property or were they new greenfield sites?

The Minister referred in her opening statement to the regional property programme.

I presume the advance factory sites are part of that programme. What exactly does the programme entail in the case of the many vacant sites in State ownership around the country? They are IDA Ireland sites. How is this married with the site visits which take place nationally? The Minister said there were a number of counties in which no advance factory sites were planned. In parallel, it was indicated in a reply to a parliamentary question of mine recently that there were a number of counties which did not receive site visits. Therefore, there are gaps on the map on which we must focus our attention. Will the Minister provide us with an overview of how the regional property programme will push vacant sites and identify potential businesses for them?

Separately, am I right in saying the finances of Science Foundation Ireland, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, InterTradeIreland and the various agencies listed in programme A are all audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General? If so, they will be subject to scrutiny by the Committee of Public Accounts. Is there any issue of which this committee should be made aware arising from previous audits of any of the agencies involved? Most of us here are starting from scratch.

I tabled a parliamentary question on Brexit which, as the Minister will appreciate, is topical, given that the referendum is being held this week. The question was transferred to the Department of the Taoiseach. Will the Minister outline to the committee the level of activity of her Department and the agencies on this scenario or in contingency planning in advance of the result of the referendum? There seems to be a view that it is a little like hoping against hope it might not happen. There seems to be a drift and business is concerned. One does not need to recite the various statistics to show our reliance on our trading relationship with the United Kingdom.