Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There is great potential in the mid-west for future investment by life science companies, medical technology companies and the pharmaceutical industry. I had the honour of being at Regeneron in Limerick with the Taoiseach only a few weeks ago. A considerable investment is happening there with the creation of nearly 1,000 jobs. I can see more investment like that happening in Limerick and Clare.

Part of what was announced in the July stimulus package was a new state aid funding package for life science investments. The state aid rules of the European Commission were relaxed in response to the Covid-19 crisis and that allows us to grant aid to companies that invest in Ireland and develop new plants for the production of medicines and medical devices. We have a fund of tens of millions of euro available which we can use to grant aid to companies to do exactly what we would like them to do in Clarecastle. We just need to find a company willing to do it. We can then put the money on the table.

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