Results 381-400 of 7,983 for speaker:Peter Burke

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: My Government has put together a lobbying register so everything is transparent so the Deputy can ask a question here.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: It is on the public record. All minutes of those meetings are available on the public record, again, through work my party has done to ensure it is transparent and all decisions are transparent.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Some data centres with new technology use water while others use air. The EPA regulates their usage and it is important that it does so effectively. The corporate sustainability reporting directive and reporting requirements are coming down the line. We have signed up to the directive and the data centres will have to comply with it in terms of the measures and parameters the Deputy has...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Public employment is vast in terms of what area you are looking at. The population of our State is growing rapidly. Looking at how much we have grown over recent years, it is quite significant. The public service will have to grow to match the services that our citizens require.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Retrofitting is a huge line of work. Many areas where people oppose having various levies to try to fund our carbon changes will be critical. I know from the midlands how much more we need to put into retrofitting. It is a huge challenge for us, at massive scale.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Review of Climate Action Plan 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Local authorities, absolutely, yes.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Regional Development (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I again thank Deputy Durkan for his very important question. He rightly points out that it is important to look at the threats on the horizon. Globalisation is a significant threat to our foreign direct investment. We live in a very fragmented international geopolitical landscape. We can see that there are many trade tensions emanating across the globe. In a European context, we are...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Regional Development (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: That is another exceptionally good question. We had a competitiveness summit a couple of months ago, and one of the key areas we are looking at is the changes in the Single Market and the exemptions that have been provided through the state-aid context. Ireland must be very careful in that regard because we are trying to ensure uniformity in the Single Market in order that it is a level...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I thank the Deputy again for pointing out the challenges and some of the solutions. I absolutely agree with her that we need to do more. We are clear about that. We are at the end of the lifetime of this Government and it will be up to political parties to bring forward their ideas, reflected in their manifestos, in the weeks ahead and ask the people to adjudicate on what we have done in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I contest what KPMG said as I have heard many people in the business sector advocate the supports in place, which have been enhanced in budget 2025, especially in respect of innovation and the start-up space. Funding for companies trying to scale has been significant. We have worked to close the bridge with the UK because there is a big divide with regard to capital gains tax and incentives...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Regional Development (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I thank the Deputy for his question. Regional development is a key element of the Government's enterprise policy and is a key focus of the work of my Department and our enterprise development agencies. On job creation, the agencies of my Department are deeply committed to fostering investment in jobs across the manufacturing and services sectors throughout the country. This commitment...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I thank the Deputy for his very important question. We know small family businesses are the backbone of the economy. They employ two thirds of all employees in our country and drive so much vital economic activity across many of our communities. In the first few weeks of my appointment as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment I introduced an SME package which brought a second round...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I have really changed the direction of the Department to focus on small businesses. The Deputy can see that from the SME package I brought in and the SME test now having received Cabinet approval such that every statutory instrument, regulation or primary legislation change must have an SME impact assessment. We have put money behind it, with the enormous amount of grant support that is now...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: It is very difficult to get through everything in a minute. I will make a decision on sick pay before the end of the year. As the Deputy will be aware, having been in the Department when many of the regulations came in, we are trying to take a pace, reduce the burden and put our SMEs first. On energy, we had a competitiveness summit in recent months. We are directing massive investment...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: This is a similar question to the previous one. It is important. We are trying to work with family businesses across the country. We brought in the SME package in the first weeks after I was appointed by the new Taoiseach. We are focusing on trying to lower the cost base for so many family businesses. We have brought in initiatives, such as ensuring they have support through...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I am very aware of the difficulties the hospitality sector continues to face right around the country due to the costs associated with doing business. SMEs are crucial to our towns and villages. The Increased Cost of Business scheme this year alone has successfully paid out over €244 million to 75,000 SMEs, including two payments to over 38,000 SMEs in the retail and hospitality...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I recognise that businesses operating in the retail and hospitality sectors continue to face higher costs with running their business, that is why I announced the Power Up Grant as part of Budget 2025. The Power Up grant has a budget of €170m. This grant builds on the success of the Increased Cost of Business Scheme which has delivered €244m to date to businesses to 75,000...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Biotechnology Industry (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: The US Biosecure Act seeks to address national security risks associated with biological manufacturing and the biotechnology sector. The Act imposes restrictions on certain foreign companies and activities that are considered potential threats to U.S. biosecurity, particularly in the context of bio-manufacturing, research, and development. I am advised that the implications for companies...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: Regional development is a key element of this Government's enterprise policy and under the IDA's 2021-2024 Strategy, the Agency is targeting at least half of all investments to regional locations. In that regard, the IDA supported 132, or 54%, of investments outside of Dublin in 2023 and, in the first six months of this year, supported 131 investments, with 74, or over 56%, planned for...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (24 Oct 2024)

Peter Burke: I am acutely aware and recognise the challenges facing SMEs right across the country. They are crucial to our towns and villages. That is why the Government has brought forward a substantial range of measures to reduce costs and enhance support for small businesses. Earlier this year, I announced a second payment of grants under the Increased Cost of Business Scheme (ICOB), for businesses...