Michael Mullins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I concur with Senator Quinn in complimenting everyone who was involved in the tasteful ceremony this morning to remember all colleagues who have died in recent years.

I wish to flag a good news story, just announced this morning, which is that more than 1,000 young entrepreneurs from every county in Ireland participated in the first ever competition to find Ireland's best young entrepreneur. The 24 finalists in that competition, coming from 17 counties, were announced this morning and will participate in the national final in Dublin in the coming weeks. This is fantastic and it gives real confidence in the country for the future that so many people between the ages of 18 and 30 are involved actively in business and have the confidence to participate in such a prestigious competition that is being run by the local enterprise offices nationwide. I wish them well and congratulate them and in particular, am pleased that two of the finalists are from County Galway. Dara Lynch of Twizt Hydration in the best new idea category and Pat Divilly of Pat Divilly Fitness in the best established business category will compete in the final to be named as Ireland's best young entrepreneur. As two thirds of all new jobs come from start-ups in the first five years of operation, it is good that the Government is supporting strongly young entrepreneurs and start-up businesses and Members must ensure that businesses are fully aware of all the supports available to them.

I hope the Minister, Deputy Richard Bruton, will come back to the House in the not too distant future for further discussions on the progress of the Action Plan for Jobs 2014 and his aspirations for the 2015 plan. That would give us an opportunity to have an input into that and ensure that the growth in our economy and the level of new job creation is sustained in the coming years.