Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

A number of questions have been asked. We have received agreement from the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to fill some key positions in Enterprise Ireland. There will be ongoing discussions between his Department and my Department on how the capacity of Enterprise Ireland might be developed against a background of resource constraints. Clearly, we will continue to find plans that will help to deliver this in an effective manner.

I am confident that InterTradeIreland can continue to deliver. It has been very successful. I think it will be able to continue to manage its well-established programmes within the resources available to it. There is a good level of take-up of these successful programmes, which are having an impact.

Under the service level agreement between Enterprise Ireland and the local enterprise offices, I will be funding the offices' activities that fall into the enterprise sphere. We will continue to fund the existing staff, the grants and the initiatives being taken by the local enterprise offices under their mandate. As the Deputy knows, we are bringing the local authority business units into those offices. They will deliver services together. The local authority business units will deal with planning and other service issues that are of concern to businesses. Under the service level agreement, we will be part-funding the delivery of services through the local authority network. That is the funding mechanism that will be used.

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