Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

At present, there are more than 250,000 SMEs throughout Ireland. These businesses employ almost 928,000 people and are the engine of the Irish economy. Unfortunately, many SMEs are struggling to grow due to a lack of Government action in specific areas. In particular, the Government's lack of action on insurance costs, its disregard for the impact on SMEs of hikes in commercial rates and the lack of urgency about Brexit are seriously affecting the prospect of small and medium enterprises.

Ironically, the Government parties of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, which is not here, attacked Sinn Féin over the weekend on policies for SMEs without so much as a look at themselves. Perhaps today, the Minister of State will answer how the Government intends to support SMEs, specifically with reference to insurance costs and commercial rates.

Small and medium businesses are being bled dry with outrageous increases in insurance premiums. Real and tangible action by the Department is needed, not more reports and discussions. The CSO recorded an increase of 57% in insurance premiums from 2011 to 2016. This cannot be solely blamed on high payouts for injury costs. Let us be under no illusions. This is about profit and our smaller enterprises are the ones carrying the brunt of this profiteering. The insurance industry occupies a privileged position in our economy due to the legal and necessary requirement of businesses to have various types of insurance.As a result, insurance companies need to accept that extra responsibility and a need for greater transparency come with this privileged lucrative position. We need urgent reform of the way insurance companies operate. Every time this issue is raised, we are told of a new report, consultation, discussion or working group. We do not need any more of this; we need real and tangible action. My colleague, Deputy Maurice Quinlivan, has met the Alliance for Insurance Reform and I am sure that the Minister of State is aware of its work. Can he outline how he plans to address its concerns?

SMEs are also at the mercy of sudden hikes in commercial rates. When will the Government bring forward the long-promised legislation in this area? That legislation must balance the ability of businesses to pay and the need for a sustainable model of funding for our local authorities. My party is hearing stories of businesses experiencing increases in rates of 200% to 300% overnight due to the revaluation process. No explanation as how to these figures are arrived at is being provided to business owners and these rates are proving critical to some family businesses. We acknowledge and accept the importance of commercial rates to local authorities. It is right and fair that businesses which benefit from local communities give back to them. We know that local authorities provide roads, transport and measures aimed at increasing tourism and footfall which, in turn, are positive for SMEs. However, this first national revaluation in 150 years could not come at a worse time for some businesses just starting to get back on their feet after the recession.

We need to examine the process of how we are doing this revaluation more closely because the current sudden trebling of costs is crippling smaller businesses, while larger businesses remain largely unscathed. It should not be the case that large multinationals on the outskirts of towns are paying minimal rates out of large profits while small, family-owned businesses which happen to be situated on main streets are paying through the roof. The family-owned business is the cornerstone of Irish society and it is being seriously impacted upon by the current commercial rates system. Can the Minister of State indicate how his Department plans to take this feedback on board?

I wish to raise the matter of the low take-up of Brexit business supports. Information provided to Sinn Féin in response to parliamentary questions shows that only a small number of SMEs have so far availed of grants put in place by the Government. The market discovery fund was launched in January with the aim of encouraging companies to expand into new markets but just 33 of these grants have been awarded to date. No data is available regarding the €300 million Brexit loan scheme, while 277 Start to Plan vouchers relating to Brexit have been issued by InterTradeIreland. The Be Prepared grant was launched by Enterprise Ireland in March 2017 and offers funding up to €5,000 to SMEs to help them prepare action plans for Brexit. Despite being launched 15 months ago, just 110 companies have availed of this assistance, accounting for just 2% of Enterprise Ireland’s client companies. The Minister of State needs to examine whether red tape or unreasonably strict criteria are preventing SMEs from applying for these State supports or whether the Government is doing enough to raise awareness of these Brexit grants.

My colleague, Senator Gavan, published a paper on the advantages and benefits the co-operative sector could bring to the Irish economy. The co-operative method is very successful across Europe and developing this sector would allow workers to own their businesses. It would act as a counterbalance to the FDI sector, which can be unreliable when economic conditions change. It is important to create that balance, particularly in regional towns and communities. Has the Minister of State any plans to develop this sector and does he recognise the advantages it could have for the Irish economy?

Sinn Féin’s enterprise policies aim to support our indigenous sector by tackling insurance costs and reforming the commercial rates system, both of which are currently hampering its growth. We propose to maintain the 12.5% corporation tax rate and we also want to ensure foreign direct investment is spread right across the State to the benefit of all regions. We want to ensure that businesses receive State support in order to prepare for and deal with Brexit, something the current Government is struggling to do given the worryingly low take-up to date of the supports it is providing. Our party has a broad range of enterprise policies that aim to help grow Irish businesses while also ensuring workers are treated fairly.