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

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 9, inclusive, together.

The National Competitiveness and Productivity Council, NCPC, published its annual competitiveness challenge report in September 2022. It makes recommendations to the Government across a range of policy areas. On 29 November 2022, the Government published a formal response to the council's recommendations. This is the third year in which a formal response was issued by the Government to the competitiveness challenge report. This response was co-ordinated by my Department, drawing together material from relevant Departments and agencies.

The council outlined a set of 20 actions or recommendations across a broad set of areas for Government consideration. These areas include boosting productivity, enhancing the labour market, infrastructure investment and managing business costs. The Government welcomed the focus of the council on the areas outlined and agreed on their importance and relevance to Ireland's continued competitiveness. The response outlined the specific actions under way across different Departments in answer to each of the recommendations of the council.

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