Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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9. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the steps being taken to reverse the continual fall in Irish business competitiveness levels and Ireland's attractiveness as a location for businesses, particularly Ireland's competitiveness standing with the UK; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14451/17]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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In her reply, will the Minister address the concerns we have expressed previously, and which I will express again, on Irish competitiveness with regard to the UK, and the competitiveness gap which exists and which seems to be widening? This is particularly concerning in the context and backdrop of Brexit.

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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In 2016, Ireland moved from 16th to seventh in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, and from 24th to 23rd in the 2016 World Economic Forum, WEF, Global Competitiveness Report. The World Bank's Ease of Doing Business report shows Ireland is ranked 18th, ahead of the UK in terms of ease of starting a business and paying tax but behind in the overall rankings.

Ireland's improved competitiveness performance has been central to employment growth. Brexit means we must do more to enhance our attractiveness as a location to start and locate a business. The 2017 Action Plan for Jobs sets a target to achieve a top five global competitiveness ranking based on the IMD measure by 2020. The plan sets out a range of actions to further enhance competitiveness and help achieve this objective.

The National Competitiveness Council has also undertaken a benchmarking exercise comparing Irish and UK competitiveness performance. To improve competitiveness, we must consolidate Ireland's traditional strengths, such as talent, productivity and export competitiveness, and address areas such as infrastructure where we lag behind other countries.

As Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, my focus is on ensuring Ireland is a competitive location internationally to establish and run a business. We are stepping up investment in infrastructure. We are driving the implementation of our research strategy, Innovation 2020. We are putting more people on the ground in foreign markets to attract investment and help Irish businesses which export to the UK and help others diversify into new markets.

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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I have mentioned this to the Minister on a number of occasions and, unfortunately, I hate to have to report that we have not seen any progress on the closing of the competitiveness gap which exists. The Minister quoted the world rankings to me, but she will know we dropped to 18th place out of 189 economies in the Ease of Doing Business report. We have now fallen behind Georgia, Latvia, Estonia and Macedonia in the global rankings. This is a very telling statistic to compare how we are doing vis-à-visother jurisdictions in terms of competitiveness. It is extremely worrying, bearing in mind the Taoiseach committed to making us the best small country in the world in which to do business. I want to ask the Minister about the capital gains tax, CGT, relief which applies to entrepreneurial gains, and I have raised this issue with her previously. As she knows, the 10% rate of CGT applies to entrepreneurs up to a limit of £10 million in the UK. We have a very unfavourable regime in this country. Young entrepreneurs will go to the UK and seek to generate enterprise and business there because they are not getting the same break here. Can we please look at our corporation tax rate, in particular for entrepreneurial start-ups?

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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In budget 2017, the Government reduced capital gains tax to help entrepreneurs, bringing this relief more in line with that in operation in the UK. We are providing a lower 10% level of capital gains tax for entrepreneurs on disposals of qualifying assets up to a lifetime limit of €1 million. Capital gains tax entrepreneurial relief introduced in 2017 provides for a reduced CGT rate of 10% for entrepreneurs. The reform of CGT is a work in progress and I have secured the competitive 10% CGT rate. The relief will be kept under consideration and, depending on its operation and the resources available, can be revisited in the context of future budgets. My objective is to deliver 10% on lifetime gains of up to €10 million. I will continue to advocate for further enhancements to the threshold.

The Deputy gave a list of competitiveness factors. I have other numbers and I am very willing to share them with the Deputy. They are on the public record with regard to the World Bank ranking, the World Economic Forum and the IMD ranking. The Deputy mentioned the goods market efficiency in Ireland, where we are rated fifth and the UK is ninth. There are numbers and statistics. My target for the IMD report for next year in the Action Plan for Jobs is to go from seventh to fifth.

Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister's answer is fine and I am sure it is correct, but the goalposts have changed. The CSO figures for 2016, and I questioned the Taoiseach on this during Leaders' Questions two weeks ago, show a drop in the value of exports of almost €500 million, that is, €480 million, for 2016. Most of this drop occurred between June and the end of the year, after the Brexit vote. Even more seriously for people such as Deputy Smyth and I in particular, small food businesses are being affected because almost all of the loss is in the food and drink sector and the Minister must take this on board.

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I am aware of the €480 million drop in the value of exports and not in the amount of exports.

Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail)
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Yes, the value.

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I am absolutely conscious of the problem and the issues in the agrisector and with regard to agrifood. I assure the Deputy I have been in touch with Bord Bia. I work very closely with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine to make sure our agribusinesses can compete. Enterprise Ireland and the local enterprise offices are on the same page. We are working towards it and we will be doing our very best. I have put in €3 million in extra staff. I have also given more money to the LEOs in the budget and ensured an extra €50 million was added to the €500 million from 2016.

2 o’clock

It is now 2017 and the budget allocation was €550 million. I will make sure to make that case for our businesses and our companies. Enterprise Ireland will work very closely with me, as will InterTradeIreland.