Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

When he launched this very welcome initiative, the Minister referred to the creation of 1,300 jobs for each €150 million of additional funding under the scheme. He knows my own interest in this matter from my involvement in projects in Coolock and elsewhere on the northside over many years. Does he agree that the outturn thus far has been somewhat disappointing? The first Capita report was limited in the insight it offered because it only covered a few months of operation of the scheme. The second, however, is more comprehensive and it shows only 24 facilities in place and a total funding allocation of €3.1 million. The Minister said he has promoted the scheme very widely throughout the country. Is it possible that some small and medium-sized enterprises are still not aware of the scheme? The ESRI commentary, despite what the Minister says, certainly points to a problematic situation for firms seeking to obtain credit. Has he considered extending it to any other institutions?

I heard the Minister speaking about multinationals this morning on "Today with Pat Kenny". Is it an objective of the Department to begin planning for a situation where there is a greater reliance on SMEs and where our own indigenous industry is given priority?

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