Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. She is right. I hear this feedback a lot throughout the country, as she does in County Louth. We have taken a number of measures to try to make some progress. We have now brought in what we call an SME test on all Cabinet memos. Before any Minister brings an idea to Cabinet, it has to go through the SME test to see what the impact on small businesses will be. The Minister of State, Deputy Dillon, is leading for us on that. The process to establish the small business unit for enterprise, tourism and employment in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is under way. The purpose of that is to ensure we have a real focus on the policy needs of small business.

We intend to prioritise competitiveness and simplifying regulation at EU level and during our Presidency. The Government intends and has agreed to reduce the VAT rate on hospitality in the budget. We keep an open mind on how we can support sectors of the economy in any trade war. We will have our trade forum meeting, at which industry, including small businesses, will be represented, on Friday.

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