Results 20,201-20,220 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Brexit Preparations (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: In terms of the microfinance supports that I announced yesterday and the local enterprise supports, €10 million is available and that supports every business across the board.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Brexit Preparations (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: It is a mixture of both. Grants are available through the enterprise offices, and some of them are repayable or part-repayable. This is taxpayers' money. If a company needs support, it gets it when it needs it. However, if it turns into profitability, I think it is only fair that it would pay the money back to the taxpayer. There is a suite of supports available to support the companies.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Brexit Preparations (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. While there remains significant uncertainty around the means by which the UK will leave the EU, the Government has worked to put in place a comprehensive suite of supports for business to suit all Brexit eventualities. The most immediate consequences of a hard Brexit are likely to be currency movements, supply chain constraints, delays, duties and...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Trade Agreements (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: As the Deputy will be aware, on 28 June, the EU concluded negotiations for an Association Agreement with Mercosur after nearly 20 years and 40 rounds of talks which would mark the EU’s largest trade deal to date. The Agreement will see a significant reduction, or elimination, of tariffs and barriers to trade which will allow an increased flow of trade and...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Enterprise Support Schemes (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: I have a longstanding focus on seeing an increase in the numbers of women in business and women becoming entrepreneurs. As recognised in Future Jobs, increasing female participation is a vital way to grow the diversity and strength of our indigenous business sector. My Department, and the Government as a whole, continue to monitor and assess the number of women in...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regional Action Plan for Jobs (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: I have made regional enterprise development one of my key priorities as Minister. That is why I led the development of the Regional Enterprise Plans, which are enterprise focused strategies that are the result of a refresh and refocus of the Regional Action Plans for Jobs to ensure their relevance and impact out to 2020.  The refreshed North-West Regional Enterprise Plan...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Work Permits Applications Data (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: It is an indicator of our economic and job creation success that the Employment Permits Section of my Department is experiencing  high levels of demand for employment permits. This has led to some delays in processing applications.  In order to reduce processing times, the Employment Permits section has introduced a number of operational changes, streamlined processes...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Foreign Direct Investment (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: The Government is committed to supporting job creation and investment in the regions, including in County Sligo and the North-West as a whole. We are determined to ensure that employment and investment are distributed as evenly as possible across the country and we have set ambitious targets in pursuit of that goal. A "Landing Space" in Sligo was...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Brexit Supports (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: My Department and its agencies have worked to put in place an extensive suite of supports, schemes and advice to ensure that businesses can prepare for the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. Many of these supports have been designed to scale after an initial investment of funds, so that they can continue to provide support to any number of Irish businesses without the need for increased...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Flexible Work Practices (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: I, and my Department, understand the importance of remote and flexible working and the potential of new digital technologies to support well-paid employment in all parts of the country. As the nature of work and society changes, the way we organise work is also changing. A labour market which offers flexible working solutions can result in tangible benefits for employers,...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regional Action Plan for Jobs (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: Enterprise development and sustainable job creation in the regions is a key policy priority of this Government. A total of 17,000 more people in the South-East are in employment in Q2 2019 than in Q1 2015 when the Regional Action Plan for Jobs started and unemployment in the South East has reduced from 11.7 percent to 8.1 percent in the same period. While we have had great success...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: IDA Ireland Jobs Data (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: As Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, a central objective of mine has been to create the best possible environment for enterprise, entrepreneurship and innovation. Attracting more foreign direct investment (FDI), and supporting the growth and expansion of overseas firms already located here, is an important part of that. Our country is performing very...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Local Enterprise Offices (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: The Local Enterprise Offices are the primary providers of supports to assist micro-enterprises within the indigenous sector that are facing challenges arising from Brexit. My Department through the LEOs, has continued to promote the importance of local businesses preparing for Brexit, and has developed a range of supports to help them achieve this. The LEOs are working vigorously to enable...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Market Access (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: The long-term response to ensuring exporters have access to alternative markets is for companies across all sectors to become more competitive, more innovative and to diversify their export footprint into more international markets. The agencies under my Department have a wide range of supports available to enable companies to consolidate their existing market share and also to become more...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement Reports (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: There has been extensive engagement with the Office of the Attorney General on the publication of the Report of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE) prepared under section 955(1)(a) of the Companies Act 2014. Because of section 956 of the Companies Act 2014 the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation is prohibited from publishing reports prepared pursuant to Section 955...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regional Enterprise Development Fund (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: My Department’s Regional Enterprise Development Fund (REDF) is a competitive Fund that has been introduced to co-finance the development and implementation of collaborative and innovative enterprise projects that can make a significant impact on enterprise development in the regions so as to help sustain and add to employment at county, regional and national level. The Scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Small and Medium Enterprises (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: My Department has a strong focus on developing the most appropriate conditions for SMEs and entrepreneurs to grow and prosper. In March 2018, I as Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation commissioned the OECD to conduct a Country Review of SME and Entrepreneurship Policies in Ireland. This 18-month project aims to provide tailored analysis and recommendations to my Department and the...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Exports Data (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: Total exports of goods for the second quarter to June 2019 amounted to €37.6 billion which represents an increase of 8.6% on the second quarter of 2018.  Total exports for the 6 months period to June 2019 amounted to €76.5 billion which represents an increase of 10.3% compared to the same period in 2018. While the UK is and will remain a major market for Irish...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Work Permits Applications (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: As the economy improves and we approach full employment, the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (DBEI) has experienced a high volume of employment permit applications which has led to some delays in processing applications. The current level of demand is due to our economic success, growing labour market and reduced labour surplus. At end September 2019, 13,835...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Competition and Consumer Protection Commission Reports (9 Oct 2019)

Heather Humphreys: As Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, I am very aware of the serious impacts on businesses of public liability insurance costs. It is important that businesses can obtain insurance cover at a reasonable and fair price.   In August I requested that the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) undertake a study into how the public liability insurance market...