Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for the response. I am surprised by the lack of data on insolvencies in recent years. The issues and the crisis facing the SME sector are getting increasingly worse. A Deloitte study recently found that almost 900 insolvencies occurred in 2024, an increase of almost a third on 2023. It predicted that the increase will continue, as will the issues affecting SMEs. The worst affected sectors are the hospitality, fitness and beauty industries. Since the Government hiked VAT, more than 700 restaurants have closed. This is having a major impact.

Dereliction is an issue right across Mayo. The antidote to dereliction must be to first stem the tide of businesses closing. The fact that the Government has no idea how many businesses have closed and it does not collect that data is of major concern. We need to address this issue. We need to show the same proactive and pro-business approach that the Government has shown to the foreign direct investment sector.

This is a major concern. Businesses in Mayo are struggling - restaurants, shops, pubs, the fitness and beauty sectors and many other areas. It is important we understand that to address dereliction in towns, we must first stem the tide of business losses.

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