Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the IMD World Competitiveness Center ranking. Equally, however, I am keen to point out that Ireland has continued to plunge in the World Bank ratings. We have dropped four places to 17th out of 189 economies. We are dis-improving by that parameter.

According to the National Competitiveness Council cost of doing business in Ireland 2016 report, new businesses in Ireland are paying 80% more in interest rates for loans than our European counterparts. Moreover, Irish consumer prices are 20% higher than the euro area average, SME prices have increased by over 20% and, despite the legislation passed during the last Dáil, legal services have increased by approximately 6% since 2010. We debated the cost of insurance last week in the Oireachtas but insurance costs have increased by 60% in two years - almost 30% per year. Let us put this into context. The ESRI has stated that industrial output would increase by 2% for every 1% improvement in our competitiveness. In other words, it would represent a 2:1 gain if we could tackle our competitiveness. What plans does the Minister have to create a regulatory environment that would improve our competitiveness and lower the cost of doing business and attract new business into the country?

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