Mr. John Magee:

I thank the Cathaoirleach and members of the committee for the invitation to attend and discuss this important topic. I would like to be associated with the sentiments expressed by Mr. Clancy. I am chair of the local enterprise office network and head of enterprise at LEO Mayo. I am joined today by my colleague Mr. Joe Lowe, head of enterprise at LEO Leitrim.

The local enterprise offices are the first-stop shop for many small business looking to start or grow. Our vision is to develop and sustain a positive enterprise ecosystem at local level throughout the country that will drive new added-value start-ups, facilitate further growth of micro and small businesses, and enhance local economies. Almost ten years in operation, the LEOs are an integral part of each local authority and facilitate close collaboration with various initiatives delivered by the local government sector. From an economic and climate change perspective, local authorities, through their local enterprise offices, play a critical role in putting in place initiatives to stimulate the local economy, to support business in creating employment and in building awareness on sustainability.

As Mr. Clancy outlined, the collaboration with Enterprise Ireland is key to the success of the local enterprise offices and ensures businesses of all sizes are assisted on their development journey from start-up to scaling. Our shared objective is to boost the productivity of established businesses and connect enterprises with innovation opportunities at home and internationally, maximising their growth, job creation potential and sustainability.

The year 2022 was the ninth consecutive year of jobs growth for LEO-backed companies. Some 7,870 new jobs were created by LEO-supported companies last year, a 10% employment increase on 2021. Approximately 84% of new jobs created were outside the Dublin region. Since 2014, 37,863 jobs have been financially supported across our portfolio of 7,221 client companies. These companies are in a diverse range of sectors including engineering, life sciences, cosmetics, technology, food and drink, craft and internationally-traded services. We provide a broad range of supports including mentoring, training, technical and expert advice, as well as financial supports.

The LEO network is acutely aware of the challenges presented by climate change and the urgent need to decarbonise our economy. Mr. Clancy has already mentioned Ireland’s commitments to reducing emissions by 2030 and climate neutrality by 2050 and how the White Paper on enterprise aligns enterprise policy with the imperative to decarbonise our economy and society. This transition to a low-carbon economy will require the concerted efforts of Government, agencies, public bodies, businesses and broader society, all working together. Sustainability and the decarbonisation of businesses will be a fundamental driver of Ireland’s future competitiveness and the long-term health of the overall economy. The need to decarbonise the economy is changing the way our small companies design, produce and consume goods and services. As Mr. Clancy stated, sustainability is no longer seen from a business perspective as something that is nice to have. It is imperative to businesses' resilience, their competitiveness, their attraction and retention of workforce - indeed, their very future.

LEOs have a wealth of experience in helping time-poor entrepreneurs by meeting their training needs, supporting them with expert advice, promoting their productivity and supporting them with the capital they need to expand and grow. We have used this proven track record to develop and provide appropriate and relevant sustainability supports for small businesses. We seek to help them to become more aware of both the obligations and opportunities presented by emissions targets and provide practical supports in this regard.

There are three key areas of support: first, client-specific expert advice to support a green transformation within the business. The Green for Business programme was launched in March 2021 and provides two days of engagement with a sustainability specialist who reviews the company's carbon footprint and energy; reviews its processes, packaging and supply chain; identifies energy-saving opportunities; and produces a practical sustainability strategy. This is free to the business, with all costs covered by the LEO.

If additional support is required, the company can subsequently avail of GreenStart, which provides a more in-depth professional engagement to improve the environmental performance of the business. GreenStart can provide up to an additional seven days of specialist engagement. Since its launch in 2021, just over €2 million has been spent on providing specialist green consultancy to 1,070 LEO clients.

Once a sustainability strategy is in place, the business can move on to the second phase of its journey, where it can potentially avail of our new energy efficiency grant. This grant supports small businesses to invest in technologies and equipment to make their businesses more energy-efficient. The grant will cover up to 50% of the costs to a maximum amount of €5,000. The scheme aims to reduce the impact of small businesses on the environment and can help them to reduce their own costs to boost their competitiveness. Since the launch of the scheme at the end of May, LEOs have been proactively engaged with our clients in raising awareness of the funding availability and how it can assist their business in progressing their sustainability ambitions.

We have worked with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications; the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland; the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment; and Enterprise Ireland's LEO centre of excellence in the development of these supports. As local enterprise offices, we continue to work collaboratively to identify ways to meet the needs of our clients.

The committee may be aware that just last week the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, launched a new national marketing and advertising campaigning to drive awareness and generate interest in our lean, digital and green supports via a dedicated new campaign landing page, allinadayswork.ie. The page and campaign are generating positive engagement, with a clear message that identifies how our supports help businesses to save time, money and energy.

There is no doubt that meeting our national climate targets is a challenge but our small businesses are becoming increasingly aware of how they can contribute and make a positive impact. Right now they are challenged for time and resources, however, and LEOs are having to work very hard to ensure that sustainability remains to the forefront of their thought processes.

We work with them to raise awareness of sustainability as a core driver of future growth and competitiveness and to align them to evolving consumer demands and the requirements of shifting business-to-business supply chain environments. We are increasing their awareness of the opportunities presented by sustainability considerations and are seeing small businesses that are insightful and innovative in their entrepreneurship. Only last week, at the National Ploughing Championships, we saw many examples of LEO clients embracing sustainability, with businesses as diverse as compost turners to vertical hydroponic growing to sustainable cosmetics and snacks.

Our Green for Business, GreenStart and energy efficiency grants represent a suite of practical and impactful sustainability supports which we are continually reviewing to ensure they meet the needs of our clients. We are conscious that there is no single silver bullet, though, and it requires a combination of expert advice and grant aid to create a stronger correlation between sustainability, energy efficiency and profitability.

Our small business community has made us proud with its ability to adapt, pivot and retrain through Brexit, Covid, the war in Ukraine and rising energy prices. Time and again small businesses have demonstrated resilience, commitment, and innovation. While some sectors remain challenged, many of those businesses have emerged stronger for the experiences they went through, and I am confident that, with our help, they will rise to the challenges of sustainability and climate action.

Every small business in the country is encouraged to talk to its local enterprise office about sustainability. We are on the ground locally and proactively engaging and supporting these small businesses in the challenges they face. LEOs are committed to playing our part in the Government's response to the climate challenges we now face.

I thank the committee again for its time and look forward to discussing these issues.