Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We have been waiting for these sectoral reports all year. I have probably asked for them from the Tánaiste, the Taoiseach and the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation on five or six occasions. I keep being told that they are coming or not coming, or that they are being put together or not being put together. There is a fund which will provide credit to enterprise. I put it to the Tánaiste that the domestic response is in stark contrast to the international response. Business people like farmers, bed and breakfast owners, hoteliers, traders and agrifood exporters are not seeing the help that is needed. The National Competitiveness Council warned a few days ago that small exporting firms might not survive Brexit, even if tariffs are not introduced, without a relentless focus on competitiveness. I put it to the Tánaiste that we are not seeing such a focus. In November, a survey conducted by InterTradeIreland found that 95% of businesses across this island do not have a plan for Brexit, which represented a slight decrease on the 97% figure recorded last year. A survey conducted by a Department here found that just 15% of small and medium-sized enterprises have taken some form of action on Brexit. The reality on the ground is that firms are not getting ready. I suggest that one of the main reasons for this lack of preparedness is that firms are not getting the support they need from the Government. What has the Tánaiste done to secure the relaxation of state aid rules? What has he done to provide grants, in addition to loans?

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