Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On a local level, I can tell the Deputy that in Galway alone, 1,182 jobs were supported by local enterprise offices in 2019. A total of 897 jobs were supported by local enterprise offices in Roscommon. I do not have the figures for Enterprise Ireland and the IDA.

The regional enterprise development fund, which comes from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, is specifically targeted at strengthening the regions. Some €16.7 million was invested under that fund since late 2017, early 2018. All that funding has gone into providing the right infrastructure to attract investment.

The record of the IDA in Galway is very good. I do not have to tell the Deputy that. Only last week, in the middle of the pandemic, 200 local jobs were created across several business functions in diligent co-operations in Galway. Those jobs were a boost to Galway and will lead to add-on jobs. It is not just those direct jobs but also those that accrue as a result of their creation. There has been much investment in Galway city. We must feed off those good job announcements and create ancillary jobs in the rural parts of Galway and Roscommon.

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