Nicole Ryan (Sinn Fein)

I thank the Minister of State for being here and welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate. SMEs are the backbone of our economy. Across the island, more than 1.45 million people are employed by SMEs. That is far more than the number employed by FDI enterprises. That is a staggering number. It proves what most of us already know instinctively, namely that SMEs are the lifeblood of our communities, the drivers of employment and the foundation of economic resilience. Shops, cafés, builders, family firms, pharmacies, hairdressers and small manufacturers are the businesses that sponsor local GAA clubs, that buy tickets for parish fundraisers, that donate spot prizes, that take on apprentices and that give young people their first jobs. I can name countless examples, from small butchers and bakers in Millstreet and Macroom to the independent retailers in Newmarket and Kanturk. They are interwoven into the fabric of our towns and villages. Too often, however, these businesses are hanging on by a thread.

One of the greatest and most persistent burdens is insurance. Public liability and employers' liability insurance premiums have soared by 56% in the past ten years. This is at a time when the sector's loss ratio, that is, the amount of money actually being spent on paying claims has fallen dramatically, from around 80% to just 53%. In plain terms, that means businesses are paying more while insurance companies are paying out less and have pocketed double-digit profits three years in a row. The Government has tinkered with reforms in this area, but the benefit of those reforms has not been passed on. When Sinn Féin put forward a Bill that would require insurance companies to demonstrate to the Central Bank that they are lowering premiums to reflect the reforms, the Government refused to accept it.

Another persistent obstacle is access to affordable credit. SMEs want to expand or modernise or simply need capital, yet in 2024 we saw no growth in the level of SME bank debt. Banks are either pulling out of the market or refusing risk. The departure of Ulster Bank and KBC has only worsened the squeeze. A recent IBEC survey found that 63% of SMEs find the application process for loans overly complex and lengthy. Too often, small businesses simply do not have the time, expertise or digital know-how to navigate the automated process. The days of the local bank manager who understood your business, your community and your challenges are gone, and with them a lifeline of support. We cannot talk about resilience if SMEs are locked out of affordable finance.

Students are a fantastic lifeline for many small rural businesses. The issue we have in rural areas is that students can only work so many hours. If they work over that threshold, they lose their grants. It is a catch-22 situation for many of these businesses. Workers are the greatest asset of any SME. Protecting them is not at odds with productivity, it actually strengthens it. The Government has promised a living wage but we are still waiting for a clear timeline in that regard. It continues to defend some minimal youth rates of pay which punish young workers for their age and do not reward their work. The programme for Government contains a commitment to publish an action plan on collective bargaining required under the EU directive on adequate minimum wage by the end of this year. It is now October, however, and we still have not seen any sign of it. If we are serious about resilience, we must be serious about fair pay for people, collective bargaining and workers' rights. Anything short of that is not acceptable.

I want to turn briefly to the potential of an all-island economy. Cross-Border trade has more than doubled in the past decade, from €5.5 billion in 2011 to €12.4 billion in 2023. This trajectory is proof of what can be achieved when barriers are lowered and businesses work together. However, that is only a fraction of the potential. Imagine what could be achieved if agriculture, tourism, the green economy and creative industries had a unified institutional framework. Belfast is home to the island's only deep-water port. A deep-water port is essential for offshore renewables. Mid-Ulster is a global hub for manufacturing. The North has world-class universities and a young ambitious workforce. Together with automatic re-entry to EU on unity happening, we would not only grow resilience but transform it. Yet, the Government still refuses to plan, prepare or even acknowledge the economic case for constitutional change. That is a missed opportunity, not just politically but also economically.

We cannot talk about SME resilience without referring to infrastructure. SMEs cannot grow where there is no housing for their staff, no reliable water for their operations, no broadband to sell their products online and no transport links to bring customers through the door. IBEC has warned repeatedly that Ireland needs a clear strategic vision and timely delivery on infrastructure, innovation and skills. Yet, delays and failures in delivery are undermining our businesses every single day.

Resilience is not just a buzzword. It is about whether the café in Macroom keeps its doors open, whether the pharmacy in Millstreet can hire another assistant or whether a small engineering firm in Cork can expand and export. SMEs have proven time and again that they are innovative, adaptive and rooted in our communities. Resilience cannot be built on the backs of small businesses alone. It requires the Government's willingness to stand up to insurance companies, reform access to credit, strengthen workers' rights, plan for constitutional change and deliver the infrastructure we need. That is how we build resilience. That is how we secure the future of our small businesses and our retail sector.