Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for his questions. The microenterprise loan fund was set up in 2012 in difficult circumstances when many SMEs and microenterprises were unable to secure loans from the traditional banks. A review was conducted in 2015. According to the breakdown, 24% of the loans go to women and the figure is the same for Microfinance Ireland.

I have given the Deputy a breakdown of the statistics on where the loans are going. Some 78% of the loans are going outside Dublin. It is important that we are creating more jobs outside Dublin as well. It has a role to play, although in recent times since the review there has been a slowdown on that. Officials in the Department are meeting with MFI and the local enterprise office to see how we can fill the gap the Deputy has spoken about because that gap exists. Hopefully, they will come up with a resolution to ensure the viability of microfinance into the future. When Microfinance Ireland was established there was a different climate. Commercial banks are obviously lending a little more now as well. Incidentally, today is National Women's Enterprise Day and there are many events around the country. It is an appropriate time to expand.

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