Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As Minister with responsibility for enterprise, tourism and employment, I am acutely aware that the period since Storm Éowyn hit on Friday 24 January has been a hugely disruptive and worrying time for householders but also for business owners, who have been extremely concerned about the impacts on their businesses, their livelihoods, their customers, their staff and their communities. I recognise that many businesses will have had a significant storm impacts and disruption to their operations over the past 12 days. I have spoken to many business owners directly who have suffered significant damage. Thankfully, for most businesses, the worst impacts have now passed and they have returned to business. I am acutely aware, however, that for a subset of businesses, issues such as access to power and to communications continue to have a disruptive impact on their operations and their livelihoods.

I put on record my appreciation for all of the first responders working in very difficult circumstances to support all of our communities. Specific ongoing challenges that local enterprise offices in the most impacted counties have highlighted to me since the start of the storm have included structural damage to business premises, including a number of buildings which have had their roofs completely torn off or have been damaged by fallen trees. Some businesses have lost significant stock either through premises damage or through spoilage, and sometimes this has arisen because of a loss of electrical power in the business premises or because the businesses in question were unable to deliver their produce to customers in time. There has also been widespread disruption to trading, with many businesses unable to open or facing significant challenges due to power, water or communications impacts arising from Storm Éowyn.

It is clear that, associated with the foregoing impacts, there will be loss of earnings or, indeed, the need to incur unexpected expenditures to respond to the impact of the storm, including the cost of repairs or temporary use of electrical generators. Finally, we need to be cognisant that our farms are businesses too and Storm Éowyn has given rise to significant animal welfare challenges as well as unprecedented damage within the agriculture and horticulture sector to farm buildings, fencing, polytunnels and trees which will take considerable work to repair. Members will no doubt be aware that on previous occasions my Department has worked with local authorities and the Irish Red Cross to put in place a humanitarian flood relief scheme where small businesses had flood damage which was not covered by insurance. To recap, these schemes have generally been quite narrow in their scope, with eligibility limited to small businesses of fewer than 20 employees, with the scheme only being applicable for flood damage where the business had been unable to secure commercial flood insurance. Voluntary bodies and sports clubs have also been included and will be able to access the scheme.

I have engaged directly with the insurance sector, which is critical, and it is my understanding that in the vast majority of cases the primary impacts arising for businesses should, in the normal course, be covered by the insurance that a business will have taken out to cover the risks associated with a major storm. This should be the first and primary recourse for businesses that have incurred financial losses as a result of Storm Éowyn, very significant losses in some cases. I welcome that the insurance industry has proactively sought through its media engagement over recent days to reassure both householders and businesses that it views impacts from Storm Éowyn as within the scope of insurance, which are therefore fully covered for both householders and businesses.

It is very relevant to highlight at this juncture that the programme for Government includes a specific commitment to introduce an extreme weather assistance scheme. This initiative predates Storm Éowyn and is a strategic policy action for delivery within the timeframe of the current Government. However, it is the case that the unprecedented impacts of Storm Éowyn mean that this initiative needs to be a high priority for the Departments involved. In this regard, my officials have been engaging with their counterparts to progress this as a matter of urgency. I believe that the broad aim should be to strengthen the existing humanitarian assistance schemes already in place, including those operated by the Department of Social Protection for households, the specific flooding supports for small businesses, sports clubs and voluntary organisations administered through my Department, and the parallel schemes operated by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Consideration must be given to how small businesses can be supported in advance of major storms to mitigate damage caused. In this regard, I look forward to being in a position to share with my Government colleagues some more detail on the extreme weather assistance scheme in the future.

My Department recognises that businesses may have had recent challenges in addressing filing and compliance obligations. Given the impact of Storm Éowyn, it is entirely appropriate to adopt a flexible, responsive and pragmatic approach to ensure that businesses and companies are not adversely affected by or penalised for the disruption to their normal filing and compliance activities arising from Storm Éowyn. While all public bodies are naturally taking a flexible and sensitive approach, it is useful to highlight two specific agencies I have engaged with that may be of particular relevance to the business sector.

The Revenue Commissioners have been fully aware that the exceptional weather events have caused difficulties for many and understand that this disruption can impact timely tax compliance. Revenue will work with those taxpayers and businesses that have been adversely impacted by Storm Éowyn to ensure that good compliance records can remain on track despite the disruption caused.

The Companies Registration Office has also been aware that certain areas of the country continue to be significantly impacted by power and communications outages caused by Storm Éowyn. As a result, some companies have encountered difficulties when filing their annual returns with the Companies Registration Office. If the person presenting company filings is in an area that has been affected by the power or communications outages caused by Storm Éowyn, they are advised to contact the Companies Registration Office, and officials there will assist the impacted businesses.

Finally, it is also important to recognise that businesses and local businesspeople have a very strong connection and commitment to their local communities, and businesses have responded with enormous generosity, community spirit and agility to the recent emergencies. As Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, I pay particular tribute to the massive contribution to the local emergency hubs and the broader national response which have been made by the business community. You only have to look at the maps published by the Government highlighting the enormous number of locations where emergency hubs have been stood up to see the contribution from businesses in supporting their local communities. In particular, there has been a huge demand for e-working centres, which have facilitated many local people to continue to have the access to the connectivity required to do their jobs. At a national level, too, I want to recognise the support from the business community. A manifestation of this practical support has included a generous and rapid response from private companies, in reaction to a specific appeal from the national emergency coordination group, in making their stocks of electrical generators available to ESB Networks, Uisce Éireann and the telecoms sector. The timely provision of this extra generation capacity has been pivotal in adding resilience to local infrastructure, with some capacity being utilised this week, enabling a number of schools in rural areas to reopen.

In that regard, and while recognising that we are still within the emergency response phase and restoration works are ongoing, it will be appropriate over the coming weeks that the Government work with business and community stakeholders to consider the additional steps we collectively need to take to build further resilience as regards our power, water and communications infrastructure, as well as a focus on further strengthening of the emergency response led by the Government. I will be taking a particular interest in supporting this work, actively working with the business sector to identify opportunities for further resilience-building in our critical infrastructure. Over recent days, a number of businesses have highlighted to me that they see a huge role for the Government in the possible provision of financial support for emergency generators. While I am not in a position to share specific details, I will be exploring appropriate responses that the Government will take and that can assist to build additional resilience and capacity in the business sector over the period ahead.

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