Feargal Quinn (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister and it was delightful to hear him speak today. He did not read from any script and his speech came from the heart. His ability and control of his brief is very clear. Yesterday, I attended the innovation showcase and if anybody else had the chance to go, they know it was worthwhile. I only gave myself a couple of hours there but I could have spent much longer there. It was interesting to see thousands of people at the Convention Centre dealing with information and communications technology, food, health, manufacturing and materials, business processes and energy. They were linking with and learning from each other. I congratulate people on the work being done. It has been interesting to hear Senators Naughton and White speak this afternoon, as they both made a great deal of sense. I hope the Minister can develop some ideas from their contributions to today's debate.

There is potential for the Government to set more concrete targets in the Action Plan for Jobs. In particular, we should be looking to be one of the top five countries in the world to set up a business; according to the World Bank's Doing Business report, Ireland is only ranked 19th in the world now. We have work to do in that regard. It takes four procedures and as long as six days to start a business in Ireland, which is simply too long. It is a real disincentive for people in establishing a business. In New Zealand it takes just one procedure and half a day to set up a business, with a cost of just €100. The procedure to set up a business in New Zealand can be done totally online and we should aim towards this benchmark. It should be possible to set up a business in Ireland with just one procedure in one day at a very low cost.

Specifically in Ireland, the four procedures to set up a company are as follows: the founder of a company swears before a commissioner of oaths; the relevant parties need to file necessary materials with the Companies Registration Office; a company seal must be procured; and the parties must register for corporation tax, PAYE, PRSI and VAT with the Revenue Commissioners. These four procedures could be done totally online, in one place for a maximum once-off payment of say €50. Will the Minister indicate if we are moving in this direction at all? We could go through the process electronically, so it would be very easy for people trying to set up a business. New Zealand has set the conditions to set up a business with one procedure and less than one day and we could set that target in the next action plan for jobs. It could happen in two years. In the European Union alone, Portugal, Belgium, Slovenia and Lithuania are ahead of us in terms of ease of establishing a business, so we can do a lot better. Will the Minister comment on whether he would be open to setting this target in the next action plan for jobs?

The more businesses we encourage to start, the better. Whether they fail is not the issue. We should encourage the formation of businesses, as the Minister said.
With regard to the overall ease of doing business, Singapore is ranked No. 1 in the world by the World Bank while Ireland is ranked No. 13. We should set a goal to break into the top ten in the next Action Plan for Jobs. That would be a good, concrete target.
One of the main issues affecting retailers remains, that is, upward-only rent reviews. We have to make progress on this issue because it would be a massive benefit to retail businesses, not to mention the wider economy. Both Fine Gael and the Labour Party promised in their election manifestos to tackle upward-only rents but nothing has been done. I raised this issue previously and it is the elephant in the room. The House passed a motion in this regard and it was accepted that we would do something about this issue, but nothing has happened since.
The third issue I wish to raise relates to languages and business. I have a daughter married in Paris. She has four children, one of whom has just graduated from Shanghai University with a masters degree. It is interesting to observe that other countries are doing so much more with languages and not just European languages. The Government sought submissions relating to the Action Plan for Jobs on designing a languages strategy by next summer to create more jobs. It has been stressed in the Government consultation document that there is a need to develop language skills for emerging or expanding markets such as China. EUROSTAT recently reported that Ireland had the lowest level of foreign language tuition in Europe, and that the study of at least one foreign language at primary school level had become compulsory in every European country except Ireland. This is sending the wrong message if the Government is serious about crucial matters like job creation.
IBEC recently recommended that all students should have a strong early foundation in the core subjects of mathematics and science and literacy in two modern languages. I am a huge enthusiast of the Michel Thomas method, which I have mentioned previously to the Minister. It teaches language without having to study grammar. The Guardianreported that when Michel Thomas taught French in a disadvantaged school in London for a week:

He astounded staff at a school in north London by teaching a group of teenagers deemed incapable of learning languages. In one week, they learned the amount of French it normally takes five years to acquire.

I recall going to the Gaeltacht. I learned more Irish in three weeks than I had in three years learning grammar.
As Senator Naughton alluded to, we should get rid of redundant regulations to help businesses. I have raised this point previously and something which is not addressed in the Action Plan for Jobs is the question of whether small businesses should be subject to the same regulations as big businesses. In France, for instance, small businesses are not subject to the same rules as large multinationals and rules come into effect if a business employs more than 50 people. The Government should consider giving an exemption in certain cases. The Action Plan for Jobs makes refers to "reduced costs though smart regulation". Why do we not move beyond smart regulation and get rid of some regulations completely to make it easier for business? We also need to look to abolish regulations that are redundant. We have done a little of this but not nearly enough. The UK has introduced an interesting concept, which is to take out two older regulations for every new regulation introduced. That is a great idea.
I refer to crowdfunding. I am involved with Linked Finance. I am a great believer in crowdfunding but we could do with regulation. Some people are afraid. There is uncertainty around the crowdfunding process, particularly due to lack of regulation.The new Action Plan for Jobs 2015 must make much more concrete reference to crowdfunding and, in particular, to state whether the Government will bring in legislation in this area.
Banque de France has a credit register in France which allows lenders see at a glance the creditworthiness of thousands of companies. This sets the conditions for further investment. I understand that the European Central Bank is building a cross-border database for the same purpose.
There is a need to collect data on employment outcomes. We have a problem that is very much related to job creation, which should be considered in the next action plan. When students graduate, we do not systematically collect, analyse and distribute information on what they end up doing, be it in employment or further education. There are opportunities in this regard. I have been involved for some time with Springboard. I am impressed with this programme. The Minister mentioned JobBridge and what these programmes can do.
The Minister can initiate a number of measures in the next action plan. I had a visit recently from a man I met in China some time back. He brought six investors from China to Europe and the two countries they visited were Ireland and Holland. That was the result of personal contacts. I had met him some years ago. He visited Ireland, spent two days here and then travelled to Holland to spend a few days there. Well done to them for picking Ireland. It was probably due to personal contacts but it gave me the opportunity to explain to them what we do here.
I am impressed by what Enterprise Ireland and the IDA are doing and what the Minister and his team are doing. I hope they will continue with the same enthusiasm they have shown up to now.