Ollie Crowe (Fianna Fail)

Fianna Fáil believes Irish SMEs are fundamentally important to the Irish economy, currently and for future economic success. That is my view also. As Members will be aware, I have spoken often about how SMEs are the backbone of the Irish economy. Some 99.8% of businesses in Ireland are classified as SMEs and 68% of employees work for SMEs. Our SMEs are the lifeblood of cities, towns and villages across the country. Of course, foreign direct investment is essential also, particularly given our status as a small trading nation. However, we must ensure our SMEs are given the same focus with regard to policy and consideration so that our domestic sector can continue to go from strength to strength. From my own experience, I know how challenging the administrative burden can be for SMEs that are limited in their resources available to address this burden. It is something that can end up taking an extraordinary amount of time, particularly for new enterprises that have not encountered it before.

I wish to say "Bye" to the students and teachers from Broadford school in County Kildare. I hope they enjoy the rest of their stay in Leinster House.

As Members may be aware, Ireland is internationally well regarded in terms of regulatory burden. The 2025 Annual Single Market and Competitiveness Report from the European Commission ranked Ireland fourth in terms of ease of regulatory compliance in the EU. Nonetheless, we must ensure that we are continuing to reduce that burden to the most minimal amount possible while also offering enhanced resources to businesses that can help them to manage that burden, especially for new entrepreneurs for reasons previously referenced.

Our goal must be to create a business environment that values hard work and entrepreneurship and supports the development of an innovative indigenous business sector. The programme for Government is clear in setting out the importance of SMEs to our economy. Developing Ireland's enterprise base remains a key priority and we will strive to reduce costs, administrative burdens and bureaucracy for businesses. Ireland’s strong competitive position is reflected in our exceptionally strong economic performance in recent years. However, the international context is rapidly changing, and we recognise that many businesses, whether indigenous or FDI, are facing increased challenges. The forum was established with the aim of reducing the cost of running a business, and addressing delays which can impact the operation of businesses in Ireland. For the first time, regulators will be directly in the room to hear from business owners and representatives themselves. The forum brings together business owners, retailers, tourism operators, accounting professionals and representative groups, alongside regulators and State agencies, to look at the structural issues that are driving up costs and the steps that could be taken to negate them.

After last week’s initial meeting, each subsequent session will focus on a specific theme, such as licensing, infrastructure, or regulatory fees, with the relevant regulators invited to attend and respond. The goal is to create a space where businesses can speak directly to decision-makers about the real world impact of rules and charges and identify areas to make practical changes. That is a hugely positive and welcome development. I am sure other members have heard complaints similar to those I have heard from business owners in the past about policymakers not listening sufficiently to their concerns or being aware of the challenges they are facing, so bringing business owners and policymakers into a forum together has the potential to make a real and substantial difference.

Another positive measure this Government has taken was done last month with the establishment of a dedicated small and cross-government network. The forum was established with the aim of reducing costs and addressing delays which can impact the operation of businesses in Ireland. In recognition of these challenges facing Ireland, the current programme for Government committed to the publication of a new whole-of-government action plan for competitiveness and productivity by January 2026. The Government has, however, accelerated this timeline, with a draft of the plan to be considered by Ministers at a competitiveness summit next month. This plan will cover industrial policy, reducing costs and regulatory burdens on businesses, investing in infrastructure, digital regulation and reform, energy reform, international trade and research, and development and innovation. Over the coming weeks, the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council will finalise and submit its Ireland's competitiveness challenge 2025 report to Government. Given the highlighted level of international uncertainty, the overarching objective of the action plan will be to focus on matters within our control by way of policy changes that can make the domestic Irish economy more competitive and resilient to economic shocks. The programme for Government and Fianna Fáil's manifesto pledged the establishment of a cost of business advisory forum and it is proposed the forum will focus on the regulatory burden as well as other costs highlighted by businesses. Its first meeting was held last week and that was welcome.

The inaugural meeting of the new Department of enterprise-led forum to examine the costs involved in running a business was on 11 June. A cross-government network has developed the enhanced SME test and will continue to work together on implementation, strengthening the language and using guidance and adding clarity as to when and where it should be applied as well as more detailed screening questions. Emphasising the need for consultation will ensure the SME test will become an even more useful tool for policymakers. The small business unit will also oversee the simplification of information and access to grants and supports for businesses though the national enterprise hub. It will also ensure the local enterprise offices are properly resourced to help small businesses.

Small businesses employ two thirds of our population and keep our local communities and economies vibrant and strong. Government must recognise this and ensure we are providing the support that SMEs need to run their businesses successfully and continue to provide vital employment and economic benefits across the country. The establishment of the small business unit comes in addition to the Government agreeing in April, as I previously referenced, to expedite the development of the action plan for competitiveness and productivity as well as adopting a series of short-term measures to address the competitiveness challenges facing Ireland. In addition to accelerating the action plan, the Government approved the following high-level short-term measures for implementation and enhancing international trade promotion. The small business unit is based in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. The programme for Government sets out clearly how the needs of small businesses must have a dedicated focus and be recognised and acknowledged across Government. The small business unit will focus on rigorously implementing the SME test to ensure the perspectives of small businesses are considered across government before new legislation or regulation is introduced. The SME test is an impact assessment tool that has been designed to assist policymakers to consider the SME perspective when making any new policies, primary or secondary legislation or regulatory compliance requirements. The objective of the SME test is to ensure the ease of use, understanding and application of policy requirements on SMEs. The test identifies disproportionate impacts on SMEs and encourages policymakers to propose alternative policy options or mitigating measures to minimise the impact on small businesses and to ensure that the regulatory environment allows SMEs to operate, grow and scale up. In addition to rigorously applying the new SME test, the Government has also recently committed to consult with business to identify additional areas across Departments and agencies where the regulatory burden could be reduced.

In terms of what is happening at EU level, members will be aware that in February the European Commission adopted a new package of proposals to simplify EU rules, boost competitiveness and unlock additional investment capacity. This is a major step forward in creating a more favourable business environment to help EU companies grow, innovate and create quality jobs. The Commission has a clear target to deliver an unprecedented simplification effort by achieving at least 25% reduction in administrative burdens and at least 35% for SMEs until the end of this mandate. These proposals will reduce the complexity of EU requirements for all businesses, especially SMEs.

It is clear how essential SMEs are to our economy. It is also clear there is a lot of good work happening by Government in terms of enhancing supports available to SMEs and reducing the administrative burden they face. We must ensure the Government continues to focus on that work and that it brings results which provide SMEs with better resources and reduced bureaucracy as they build their businesses.

I wish the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, the very best in her role. If she keeps on going the way she started off, she will be flying it.