Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Cheann Comhairle agus leis an Teachta. Guím gach rath agus ar gach iarracht ar an lá tábhachtach seo. I wish everybody a happy International Women's Day. It should not take a day. All of our good wishes should be given every day and we should learn every day. Is Seachtain na Gaeilge í freisin agus tá sé tábhachtach go mbainfimid úsáid as an Gaeilge gach seachtain den bhliain freisin. I thank Deputy Moynihan for raising this important issue on behalf of Charleville. I know he and Councillor Ian Doyle work passionately for the interests of the community in Charleville. I share his interest, not just in that region but in the regions generally.

Balanced regional enterprise development is a key priority of this Government. IDA Ireland shares this priority. IDA Ireland is targeting half of all investments to regional locations. At the midpoint of its current strategy, 260 out of 491 investments won went to regional locations, which is well over half of the figure. Foreign direct investment is not the sole contributor to addressing the challenges facing our regions, but it can have a significant impact in propelling economic recovery and realising more balanced growth, as Deputy Moynihan referred to. In 2022, the numbers directly employed in IDA multinational clients in Ireland reached 301,475, the highest foreign direct investment employment level ever, with employment growth in foreign direct investment companies recorded in every region of the country.

Charleville and Cork County are marketed by the IDA as part of the wider south region, which includes County Kerry as well as Cork. There are 229 IDA companies in this region and 212 IDA-supported companies in Cork, employing 50,208 people. As Deputy Moynihan referred to, IDA has several business parks. In north Cork, they include Charleville, Millstreet, Fermoy, Kanturk and Mallow. The largest available land bank is Fermoy business and technology park, which has a total area of 8 ha. There are two IDA client companies in Charleville, RCD Engineering and SHV Energy, which collectively employ 260 employees. There are a further 11 IDA client companies located across north Cork, employing 1,700 employees.

The south west has a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across technology, life sciences, international financial services and, as referred to by Deputy Moynihan, engineering and industrial technologies. It has also won significant investment across all of these sectors over a sustained period, which has contributed significantly to employment growth and positive economic impacts on other sectors of the economy.

The IDA has regular engagement with client companies and stakeholders in the county, and throughout 2023, IDA Ireland will continue to market Charleville and the south west and will arrange corresponding site visits as required. I will follow up with IDA Ireland regarding the Deputy's remarks and seek to meet with him about land availability in Charleville.

Enterprise Ireland and the local enterprise offices also play a central role in supporting enterprise to maximise job retention and creation in all regions. Finally, nine regional enterprise plans were launched by my Department in early 2022 to reinforce regional enterprise development and job creation throughout the country. The south west regional enterprise plan encompasses Cork and Kerry and facilitates stakeholders to work collaboratively to strengthen the enterprise ecosystem and realise enterprise growth and job creation in the region. There may be possibilities under the south west regional enterprise plan to build on the engineering cluster in Charleville referred to by the Deputy. I am happy to work with him, the local enterprise office, Enterprise Ireland and the local educational institutions regarding that.

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