Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have previously welcomed the fund. However, it was one of the lowest of the funds made available in Enterprise Ireland's suite last year. I want to see whether that fund will be launched again this year and, given the oversubscription to the fund, I want to know whether there will be a bigger budget.

Second, the fact that the fund was oversubscribed must give the Minister an indication - it certainly must give Enterprise Ireland an indication - of the strength of female entrepreneurship throughout the country. Surely the Minister, in assembling what he has described as a core group of active and dynamic business people, could have found three or four women, out of the total of seven, to drive this initiative. He has given no proper explanation for his failure to do so. It sends a very poor message in encouraging female entrepreneurship.

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