Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I know Deputy Deering has a great interest in enterprise. Carlow is a great county. I have been there on several occasions with Deputy Deering.

We take a collaborative approach with the agencies and with local government, which is very important. Carlow is very lucky to have an information age technology college and the innovation centre attached to it, which plays a very important role in job creation. There have been some recent important job announcements in Carlow, from the IDA and indigenous enterprise. Recently, some rural enterprise development funding, €1.4 million, went to an Insurtech Network Centre in Carlow. We have also seen some other regional funding go to Borris railway viaduct and to Altamont House and Gardens. The local enterprise offices, LEOs, working hand in hand with local authorities and others, have had some success. Indigenous jobs are very important.

We receive many questions from Members asking why there are not more site visits or foreign direct investment in the county. SMEs account for almost 98% of the enterprises in the country and employ almost 70% of the workforce throughout regional Ireland. LEOs play a very important role, Enterprise Ireland plays an important role. This collaborative approach by all the agencies, including the third level institute in Carlow, will ensure that the regional plan that the Minister will launch will be successful and will build on the number of jobs we said we would create under the Action Plan for Jobs, that is, 145,000 jobs by 2020. We have already exceeded that and we will do a lot more. As one party on the other side of the House said once, "a lot done, more to do".

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