Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies. I have not yet met with any of the regional chambers but I will be happy to do so. I thank the Deputies for publicly prompting me, especially in view of the fact that so many jobs in this industry are located in the regions. Today I chaired a meeting with the industry advisory committee, which brings representatives of all the sectors in this area together with relevant senior public servants. That joint group holds a quarterly meeting. We discussed our plans for 2021. As part of that conference I spoke by video link with representatives of State Street bank in Kilkenny. I also spoke with representatives of Fexco, which is located in Kerry. There is a big regional spread in this sector, with approximately one third of jobs located in the regions. We want to develop that further. People now want to migrate closer to home. The industry is very alive to the fact that increased working from home is one of the outcomes of Covid-19. I will take up those suggestions and I thank the Deputies.

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