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

Absolutely. Only this week the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin, announced the competitive start programme, which is designed to support new enterprise in the regions. This programme is one of the vehicles we use. Enterprise is very strong in Wexford. The fact that employment has increased by 21,300 in the past two years is indicative of a very strong performance. Some of this has been as a result of the efforts of IDA Ireland companies. We won significant investments in Wexford from ClearStream Technologies and Danone. On the indigenous side, Eishtec has become a significant player. This company grew phoenix-like from the ashes of TalkTalk, it employs more people than the latter ever did and it has the capacity to grow. There is a strong enterprise culture in the south east, particularly Wexford, and we want to build on this. In that context, it is necessary to examine the position with regard to all the regional assets, including the education and training boards, SOLAS facilities and the institutes of technology, and areas of strength. As the Deputy is aware, the local enterprise offices are engaging directly with local authorities. We are of the view that there is capacity to build on the competitive strengths that exist. In Wexford, these strengths lie in the areas of pharma and food and we need to build upon these. Consequently, there is an onus on Enterprise Ireland to consider its base of companies and to build off the assets that are already in place in Wexford and the wider south-east region.

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