Results 2,821-2,840 of 4,073 for speaker:Mary Mitchell O'Connor

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: There we go.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: It is all right. I do not mind at all. The relevant State bodies will do everything possible to help the employees of this company to find new job opportunities. I have arranged that the inter-agency group, which is currently working to assist the Ranbaxy Laboratories and Suir Pharma closures, will now extend its remit to deal with the forthcoming closure in Nenagh. Earlier this week I...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I have done it before publicly but I reiterate that 63,000 jobs were created last year, with 72% of them outside Dublin. Those jobs are coming to provincial, rural and regional Ireland.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: The Deputy does not want to hear that. I met the Deputy on two or three occasions in my Department with various groups. We met about the Lisheen quarry project. We have also met about the recent closure of Coty. It is regrettable. It is terrible that 200 people lost their jobs there. I assure the Deputy that we are doing our best to ensure that site will be sold to a viable customer. In...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Some 3,368 jobs are supported by IDA Ireland in Tipperary. The Deputy has not even mentioned Enterprise Ireland. They support 5,352 jobs there.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Deputy Mattie McGrath does not want to hear anything. All he wants to do is shout.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: The LEOs in Tipperary support 1,437 jobs. Deputy McGrath stated he has not met IDA Ireland. I beg the Deputy's pardon. The Deputy met IDA Ireland in my office at least two or three times.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Did the Deputy inquire to meet the CEO?

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Job Creation (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I did not know that. That is the Deputy's business and his. Deputy McGrath is also raising ConnectIreland in another question about Tipperary. I dealt with ConnectIreland. I believe there is another question coming about ConnectIreland and I will have more to time to address that issue.

Other Questions: IDA Site Visits (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Regional development is a key priority for me and I am determined to help drive job creation all over Ireland. Increasing and sustaining foreign direct investment outside of our main urban areas represents a vital part of this. IDA Ireland's strategy for 2015-19 includes a commitment to increase foreign direct investment in every region outside Dublin by 30%-40%. The 2016 results show...

Other Questions: IDA Site Visits (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: It is because the Deputy is saying its all going to Dublin.

Other Questions: IDA Site Visits (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I know where Deputy Eugene Murphy's concern is coming from but if he thinks about it, the chief executive and the board of the companies involved decide where they want to go. IDA Ireland encourages them. I myself have encouraged companies that I have met to go to regional towns not too far from many of the towns Deputy Murphy mentioned. The LEOs in Roscommon supported the creation of...

Other Questions: IDA Site Visits (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: In my answer, I mentioned these reasons and they include transport hubs, talent and local infrastructure.

Other Questions: IDA Site Visits (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I work very hard to ensure that this will happen, not just with the IDA but with Enterprise Ireland, our LEOs and InterTradeIreland. Despite what Deputy Niall Collins said, I am still coming back with hard figures to him. In 2016, 52% of all jobs created were outside Dublin as were 55% of all site visits. At the same time, we have to be realistic. There is a global trend to base foreign...

Other Questions: IDA Site Visits (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I have just told Deputy Collins that there were 638 sites visits altogether and I called out a number of counties, not just Limerick, albeit I pointed out that Limerick had been successful, as had Galway, Louth and Sligo.

Other Questions: IDA Site Visits (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: That is if one is counting site visits as successes, which I do not. I see the landing of jobs in those areas as the success.

Other Questions: Brexit Issues (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: While the full extent of any impact of Brexit on research in Ireland will only become evident as the Brexit situation unfolds, Science Foundation Ireland, an agency of my Department, is actively working on measures we can take to maximise the opportunities as well as mitigate the risks. We are taking a positive and proactive approach to supporting our research and innovation sector in light...

Other Questions: Brexit Issues (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: The PRTLI programme has been allocated €14.4 million. While this figure is small relative to recent years, the historic liabilities in cycle 5 are close to being paid down in full. We are at an early stage in terms of the design of the successor to PRTLI cycle 5. As such, it has yet to be decided whether there will be any specific Brexit-related component to the programme. However,...

Other Questions: Brexit Issues (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I hear exactly what the Deputy is saying. Without doubt, the programme for research in third level institutions, PRTLI, has been an important part of the research funding and it has provided dedicated large-scale research funding for colleges to implement their research strategies and fund the people, equipment and buildings to go with them. The PRTLI has involved €1.2 billion of...

Other Questions: Economic Competitiveness (23 Mar 2017)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: 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...