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

The Deputy raises a valid point and that is why we are launching in the coming weeks Enterprise Ireland's new strategy for the next five years. We need a stronger relationship with Enterprise Ireland and the IDA to make sites available to smaller indigenous enterprises which have grown significantly in recent years. I have raised this with the Department and my fellow Ministers. It is an area we will zone in on because there are significant smaller enterprises which have a land requirement, particularly in the light manufacturing sector. We will be doing work on that. IDA has assured me it is working with Enterprise Ireland to make land available should it be required. We have to do more in that space. It is important we focus heavily on our regions in the next Enterprise Ireland strategy, just as the IDA has. We will have a significant target in our indigenous base for Enterprise Ireland, building on the 67% of regional investments we have seen in growth in the past five years.

See this speech in context