John Perry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this very important issue, and the Minister for attending.

The role of the county enterprise boards, particularly that of Sligo County Enterprise Board, is of great concern regarding small companies. The parent company, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, is in the process of adding further constraints on how it operates with smaller companies. The concern is that such constraints, affecting up to 2,000 small companies in Sligo with fewer than ten employees, are not in the best interests of the development of small enterprise. It is estimated that up to 20,000 people work in such small companies.

While I certainly welcomed this week's announcement on funding for Enterprise Ireland for larger companies, when it comes to the development of smaller ones, funding for enterprise boards is a little over €1.5 million. There is potential for job creation, and it certainly has a great impact if up to 20,000 people are employed in 2,000 companies in Sligo.

Small businesses face great difficulties, including burdensome and costly administrative regulations, rising local authority charges and high rates. Many business people feel that they receive no return on these charges. Water charges are high, and yearly rate increases bring little or no benefit. There is poor access to information and advice and inadequate infrastructure. It is difficult in certain cases when one is starting small to access finance, and there can be a weak management capability.

All those smaller companies are starting from scratch, and it is particularly important that we consider the level of support for them. The enterprise boards need a high level of capability, but there has been limited engagement by the Department with the boards' chairmen and voluntary directors, showing little appreciation of people's continuing role in development when working on the boards. It is very unfortunate when one considers the opportunities for job creation in the economy of Sligo or any county. There has been a lack of development and great emphasis on job creation. Some 85,000 small companies in Ireland employ up to 347,000 people, and in Sligo up to 2,000 companies employ perhaps 20,000, yet there is a lack of back-up to exploit potential.

Within the last three years, some €650 million was stolen from the social insurance fund, despite the great contribution of employees and employers who receive little or no support. That is true of the services sector but also of manufacturing and those who set up in small enterprise parks. It is not merely about retail but about the creation of enterprising, manufacturing and IT jobs, which is a very important role. The Minister should consider the level of funding. Enterprise Ireland in Sligo, based on the announcement made during the week, supports high-potential start-ups, which means companies based on technological innovation likely to achieve significant growth in three years, sales of €1 million per annum, employing ten or more, export-oriented, and ideally led by an experienced team with a mixture of technical and commercial competence. That definition includes early-stage, product-led, research and development companies, with equivalent sales and employment potential. These are the companies with which Enterprise Ireland is dealing.

I believe that from the small acorn the large oak grows. Nothing is happening with small companies, and while the competition is very important in the retail trade, the manufacturing sector is different. There is an institute of technology in Sligo, and thousands of students are leaving the region. It is regrettable that there is not more support, and I call on the Minister of State to deal directly with enterprise boards, which are the vehicle for it. Small companies, the backbone of the economy, need that. The Government has failed to deliver to them, especially in the Sligo region.

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