Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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12. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the steps his Department has taken to implement the south-east economic development strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12164/14]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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This question continues today's theme of regional development. One of the regions that is not performing is the south east where the unemployment rate is 15.5% versus 12.2% nationally. The Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation appointed Senator David Cullinane as a rapporteur to produce a cross-party report including a series of actions on how the problem can be addressed. I would like the Minister to explain the current status of that report.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I am conscious of the challenges facing the south-east and that is why I commissioned Forfás to undertake the south-east regional employment action plan. I initiated the south-east forum which bring together the agencies and stakeholders involved. Work is going on to implement that plan and significant progress has been made. Since 2011, there have been 79 IDA-sposored site visits by potential investors to the region which is almost double the number which took place in the 2008 to 2010 period.

An additional 15,000 jobs have been created in the region, resulting in the unemployment rate having dropped from 18.8% to 15.5% in 2013. There have been significant gains for the region, including a major investment by Glanbia in Belview which will provide 1,600 direct and indirect jobs, as well as an additional 450 jobs during the construction phase. In 2013, Sanofi announced plans to invest €44 million in Genzyme's biotechnology campus in Waterford. Also last year, Nypro Healthcare announced plans to establish an additional state-of-the-art medical device facility in Waterford, which will result in the creation of over 200 high quality jobs. Eishtec, the call centre operator, has in the region of 750 staff between its Waterford and Wexford sites. The company aims to bring that total to approximately 900 by this summer.

The local enterprise offices have been busy, as well. We are committed to the construction of a 2,348 sq. m facility in the IDA technology park on the Cork Road in Waterford. We are proceeding across the spectrum of initiatives that were outlined in the plan. We have a long way to go but clearly the improvement in employment is encouraging.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The difficulty is that there is a long-term problem there, although I accept that a lot of progress has been made. Has the Minister pursued the appointment of an IDA regional manager for the south east and the establishment of a regional operation so that the IDA would be based in the community?

Can the Minister explain why Waterford was excluded from a series of "better business" seminars around the country? They are getting a huge response and I gather there was a very successful one in Limerick.

If we are taking seriously Waterford, its potential for jobs creation and business development and its status as a regional capital, why was it excluded from the roll-out of these seminars? Local businesses in Waterford might want to access some of the opportunities the Minister outlined. They could have come and engaged with the Department's agencies.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Waterford certainly has not been excluded. I have held two Action Plan for Jobs meetings there and intend to have more. In the first phase of the support for business pilot initiative, just one meeting is being held in Dublin. We will look at Waterford in the next phase. I see the merit of that. There is no region I have visited more often in an effort to understand the needs of enterprise and to respond to them than the south east. It is certainly not being overlooked by me. The IDA's approach was raised. I am convinced by the effort we have made to increase the focus on the region, which has resulted in a significant increase in site visits. I am satisfied with the pipeline that is building up, which will deliver additional investment in the region. I am satisfied with the IDA's response. Its deployment of resources is delivering improved performance, which is what I seek.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I accept and welcome that progress has been made in the south east, but there is a long way to go. The Minister's remarks contrast with his earlier response on regional policy to the effect that he cannot corral and force the IDA. A political decision has been taken to prioritise the south east, which has resulted in increased activity. I hope the Minister will take that political decision for other regions.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The point I was making to Deputy Tóibín was that we cannot look to the capacity of the IDA to provide for every town and village. The IDA cannot fill that gap and never will. A large region like the south east with a significant educational asset in the Waterford Institute of Technology and its established company base in food, pharmaceuticals and other sectors is a cluster we must build out. That is why we are building in Waterford where there is a cluster that will attract investment. This is an additional strengthening of that cluster. There is no contradiction.