Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I hear the Deputy's point. I do not think we should downplay the importance of multinationals in Ireland. We are a globalised economy and the multinational sector makes a phenomenal contribution to both our tax take and employment opportunities in Ireland. My priority is and will continue to be building Irish companies, SMEs and family businesses and helping them and supporting them to grow and expand. That is the heartbeat of an economy. It is where 80% of our employment comes from. While, of course, we need to support and remain competitive for international business to locate here, we need to always prioritise building the potential for Irish enterprise, entrepreneurs, start-ups and graduates. That means investing in education and in enterprise-focused policy and supports. There is a big focus on that. If the Deputy has had a chance to read the White Paper on Enterprise, that is effectively our enterprise strategy now. There is a real focus on decarbonising our economy, digitising it, and ensuring that Irish SMEs can aspire to become multinationals themselves, based out of Ireland, as ambitious, growing Irish businesses. We will continue to have a big focus on that. It is the No. 1 priority.