Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased to be in a position to state the feedback from the international companies that invest here, representatives of dozens of which I have met in the almost six months I have been Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, both in Ireland and abroad on trade missions, is positive. The job announcements in Drogheda, Limerick, Waterford and so on and recent weeks bear testament to that. The universal feedback is positive about the experience companies have in Ireland and they wish to continue investing here. They are interested in our situation post Brexit and I think there are opportunities. Those that have businesses in the UK are concerned about the changes there. In recent times, the focus on housing is clearly being raised by some companies, both with IDA Ireland and myself. They have questions about what is going to happen and what the Government's plans are. Business wants to be assured that issues are being dealt with. The most important thing is for us to be clear with businesses that a plan is in place to provide greater housing and that there is also a national planning framework and capital investment programme.

11 o’clock

I have been outlining to businesses that a plan is in place to deal with these issues. Quite a number of the companies I have met, when I have checked whether their staff have experienced housing difficulties, even very recently, have said they have not and that they have been able to deal with the issue. However, there is no doubt but that the issue needs to be addressed; otherwise, it will become a barrier.

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