Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 1: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps he will take to implement the key recommendations of the EMERGE programme run under the EU EQUAL programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8561/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The EQUAL programme has provided co-funding to 43 projects over the programming period, one of which is the EMERGE project, which operates under the entrepreneurship pillar of the programme. The aim of the EMERGE project was to develop methodologies for the development and expansion of ethnic minority enterprises, EMEs and to assist EMEs in overcoming business obstacles within the regulatory and cultural environment.

The EQUAL programme is now coming to a close. The experimental approach of EQUAL has provided the opportunity to test new ways of integrating marginalised groups into the workforce, preparing them for the world of work and increasing the skills of those already in employment.

Innovation has been a key component and building block of the EQUAL programme and the EMERGE project has successfully developed innovative solutions to help respond to the specific needs of ethnic minority entrepreneurs. In November 2007, the project launched the report Harnessing the Potential: Promoting Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship in Ireland, which outlines the need to harness the potential of our ethnic entrepreneurs and to ensure that the required supports and training are in place. My colleague Deputy Brian Lenihan, Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, addressed the launch and welcomed the key findings and recommendations of the report. Some responsibility for the subject matter and policy issues concerning participants in EMERGE lies within his remit.

The success of the EMERGE project under the EQUAL programme has resulted in mainstreaming of the EMERGE approach by the Fingal County Enterprise Board with the support of local state agencies. The Institute for Minority Entrepreneurship has taken on the EMERGE approach and Skillnets funding amounting to €350,000 has been secured for EMERGE skillnets.

It is clear there is great potential for fostering entrepreneurship among the immigrant population in Ireland. My Department welcomes the Harnessing the Potential report and will examine its findings and recommendations. The successful mainstreaming of EMERGE shows that the lessons learned from this EQUAL project will continue to be applied.

While there are certainly a number of issues which are specific to the immigrant population with regard to entrepreneurship, many of the findings and recommendations identified in Harnessing the Potential were addressed in both the Enterprise Strategy Group report of 2004 and the report of the Small Business Forum published in May 2006, both of which are in the process of being implemented.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House.

The Small Business Forum report placed particular importance on the development of the spirit and culture of entrepreneurship and recommended that the Government should adopt a national entrepreneurship policy focused on optimising the number of start-up businesses. It also recommended that there should be a particular focus on the stimulation of latent entrepreneurial potential, particularly among women and the immigrant community. My Department is committed to bringing forward a statement on national entrepreneurship policy in 2008.

One way of embedding an entrepreneurship culture in Ireland and meeting the recommendations of the Small Business Forum is through the creation of a national entrepreneurship week to mobilise the key stakeholders in the area and to draw public attention to the topic. My Department has secured funding to cover such a week as part of the 2008 Estimates process. The Department would see a national entrepreneurship week as targeting all latent entrepreneurial potential within the population, including immigrants. An additional separate national campaign for immigrants would needlessly duplicate such a process. The recommendation of the Enterprise Strategy Group supported the One Step Up programme, which is now FÁS's key programme for improving the skills of those in employment. This year the One Step Up programme has a budget of €46 million and is expected to deliver training to approximately 32,000 people. The programme is open to people of all ethnic origins.

It is clear that much has been happening to implement the recommendations identified in the EMERGE report and I anticipate that more will be done in the near future.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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I acknowledge the Minister's comment about innovation. The report that has been published is interesting. However, there is now a slowdown in the economy. That is acknowledged on all sides of the House. If we are to break out of that cycle it is important that we support small entrepreneurial businesses as much as possible. One of the elements of this is the knowledge that is being brought into this country by our migrant community, who are bringing in new ideas and products. However, there are two fundamental barriers to this. The first is the issue of business permission. What steps is the Minister taking, in conjunction with the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, to get rid of the excessively burdensome regulations that currently exist and ensure that decisions on business permission are based on the proposed business idea rather than a bureaucratic process, as is currently the case?

What specific proposals is the Minister introducing to deal with the issue of access to finance? For many migrant entrepreneurs, access to the traditional forms of finance, such as banking institutions, is not open to them.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The economy is going through a transition phase and there has been significant correction, particularly in the construction sector. In some ways this opens up opportunities for the entrepreneurial sector. We are hoping that mobile capital and funding will be redirected towards start-up companies. The good news is that the high-potential start-up companies supported by Enterprise Ireland — from last year, the previous year and this year, which we will launch next week — offer exciting evidence of the number of new companies emerging on the scene, particularly in value-added activities such as software, food products, life sciences and internationally traded services.

The business permission scheme, which is operated by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, is currently under review by the Department and by the Minister. I would point out, however, that there are other ways in which people can get permission to start businesses. Under the business permission scheme the migrant is required to satisfy certain criteria, including investment of up to €300,000, and the original rationale for this was to encourage employment creation. However, this is not the only way in which a foreign national can operate a business in Ireland. The right to operate a business depends on immigration status. For example, EU nationals are automatically entitled to engage in business as one of their rights of free movement. In addition, non-EEA nationals who have Stamp 4 permission also hold that right. I will check this again, but my figures suggest that up to 60,000 people are in this category, which is a substantial number. However, I will have this checked as it seems high to me.

For the review of the business permission scheme we will certainly consider any ideas from the Deputy and we will work with the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. However, the Deputy should bear in mind that we accept the point that there are significant entrepreneurial opportunities within the migrant population in Ireland. Many of the schemes based on the report of the Small Business Forum, Skillnets and training issues are now being mainstreamed to provide supports.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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I ask the Minister to go back to the issue of finances, which is fundamental to getting many of these operations off the ground. Enterprise Ireland is not the way to sort out this.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The bottom line is that it will be the only game in town in terms of the actual operation of the schemes.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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There are many Irish companies that cannot avail of it——

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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They can.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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——never mind migrant companies.

John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Ceann Comhairle)
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The only game in town now is Question No. 2.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I will answer very quickly. We have reformed the business expansion seed capital schemes and increased the limits dramatically. This affects all companies, whether clients of Enterprise Ireland or not. A company does not have to be a client to avail of these schemes.