Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)

In May, when I received the letter in question, I spoke to the chairman of the IDA and indicated that I would give priority to the economic agencies that would deliver jobs. I made him aware that this would take place when we completed the overall employment framework and that is exactly what happened. I called in the chief executives of the IDA and Enterprise Ireland and asked what were their requirements to meet the targets that had been set out. These were new targets because the IDA had previously indicated that it would increase the number of companies it brought to Ireland from 640 to 750. I agreed with both agencies on what were the necessary employment levels and ensured both organisations secured the number of staff they required. As I indicated, Enterprise Ireland is recruiting 12 crucial staff members to help it achieve its targets. Both the IDA and Enterprise Ireland have indicated publicly that they are satisfied that the number of staff allocated to them will allow them to meet the targets they have set.

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