Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I very much welcome the fact that there is foreign direct investment in Clonmel and south Tipperary. They are great companies providing great employment and spin-off activity. As I said, 2017 was a very good year for the IDA in the south east, with a significant deficit reduced by almost 200 jobs. The number of IDA-supported jobs increased by 10.9% in the south east, an impressive performance against a mere 5.3% increase nationally. However, since 2011 the south east has only accounted for 5% of the net jobs created nationally. While there are foreign direct investment jobs in Clonmel, Tipperary town and west Tipperary have none. The Minister referred to eight visits each year. Were any of those visits to Tipperary town? Other Deputies here have promised that big things were going to happen with the IDA, but we now know a certain premises in Tipperary town is not even on the list. It is worrying that while there are jobs in the county town of Clonmel and some in Cashel, they are not in Carrick-on-Suir, Tipperary town or Cahir. We need a balanced spread to those areas. Dublin is getting the lion's share of everything and Tipperary is not getting the spin-off.

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