Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputy Burke for all his work in this area. I was with him recently in Cork. We had a great meeting looking at all the opportunities there and met many people from the community.

I will say three quick things. First, the Department is working on a scheme for small manufacturing sites for businesses. There is huge demand, particularly for manufacturing and engineering businesses, for small units. Second, Cork will be key in looking at our next generation site. We will have a next generation site in the south of Ireland and Cork would be a fantastic location. It will be over 1,000 acres. That will be where the next generation Intel, semiconductor company or life science company is. It will be important for Cork. Third, working with IDA Ireland, we are happy to work on the options. A lot of negotiations are going on about acquisition of land in that area and we will be happy to work with the Deputy and his office to try to ensure there is space for opportunity. Lead times are critical and if we can have large sites for bigger corporations, the lead times will be shorter. The sites should be utility rich so the companies can get working quickly. That will be important. Cork will be earmarked for one of those in the south.

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