John Perry (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 8 and 14 together.

As I outlined in response to an earlier question from Deputy Calleary, the Government recognises the importance of the retail sector to the economy. It is employment intensive and covers every community in the country. Combined with wholesale, the sector employs 258,000 people in Ireland, which is almost 15% of our total workforce. The sector straddles a range of operations, from one person online set-ups to multinational chains, and the types of assistance needed vary throughout the sector.

The measures I outlined for the retail sector as a whole will support SMEs and larger enterprises in the sector, as well as the more general measures in the action plan for jobs aimed at supporting employment throughout the economy. In addition, small businesses in the retail sector will be able to benefit from ambitious reform of the delivery of services to small businesses generally. This will include the dissolution of the county and city enterprise boards and the establishment of local enterprise offices, LEOs, to create a high quality, innovative, one-stop shop support service for small businesses. Key local authority services will be integrated into the LEOs to promote a local environment within which enterprise can thrive.

It is useful to note that while the retail sector in Ireland has been struggling as a result of the economic downturn, lack of confidence and a lack of credit, it compares relatively well with the retail sector throughout the EU. In September 2012, compared with September 2011, the retail sales index fell by 0.8% in the euro area, while it rose by 1.3% for the same period in Ireland.

I am aware that in recent weeks a number of retailers have made announcements that more than 2,000 seasonal retail jobs will be available for the Christmas season in a range of both part-time and full-time roles throughout the country. This is very welcome.

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