Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Durkan for tabling this question. As he will be aware, Enterprise Ireland is the agency under the aegis of the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation with responsibility for the development of Irish enterprise - the majority of which can be classified as small and medium sized - thereby deepening Ireland’s footprint in world markets and supporting employment creation in our economy. The agency works with its clients to increase job creation with the aim of increasing national and regional prosperity. For the three years 2011 to 2013 - based on Enterprise Ireland's 2013 employment survey - full-time employment rose from 143,657 in 2011 to 149,718 in 2013. For the three years 2011 to 2013, the position with regard to other, mainly part-time employment, was 24,695 in 2011. This dropped to 24,210 in 2012 and rose again to 26,032 in 2013, a total increase of 1,337. When taken together, total employment in Enterprise Ireland client companies rose from 168,353 in 2011 to 175,750 in 2013. The 2014 results of the agency's employment survey of its client companies are expected to be announced in early 2015. It is expected that these will be positive in nature. Based on the pipeline of projects approved by Enterprise Ireland, the continued strengthening of key export markets and significant improvements in the domestic economy, it is strongly anticipated that the recent trend of jobs growth across Enterprise Ireland's client base will be continued in 2014 and will provide a strong platform for growth in employment in 2015.

Local enterprise offices are significant drivers of local economic growth in every county and region of the country. My Department is leading the development of a regional enterprise development framework, which has recently been agreed and which will involve the development of strategies for regional enterprise covering the entire country. The Minister, Deputy Bruton, referred to this matter earlier in the context of the midlands strategy and that relating to the south east. We will be rolling out various strategies next year across all the regions in order to try to ensure that we strike the type of balance in respect of regional growth which the Deputy wishes to see.

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