Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)
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Question 150: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his plans to break up a company (details supplied) and the future role that the company will have in the mid-west region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31615/05]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I have no plans to break up Shannon Development. On 28 July last, following detailed consultations with the board of the company, other stakeholders and regional interests, I announced a decision on a future mandate for Shannon Development. This new mandate envisages an active, focused role for the company, complementary to that of the national agencies, in the best interests of the economic development of the mid-west region.

As I have indicated in response to previous similar Dáil questions, there have been a number of recent developments that impact on the future role of Shannon Development, the most significant of which are: the proposed relocation of the headquarters of Enterprise Ireland to Shannon as part of the decentralisation programme; the Enterprise Strategy Group recommendation that Shannon Development should disengage from industrial development functions; and the establishment of an independent Shannon Airport Authority.

Discussions commenced with Shannon Development early last year and, in March 2005, the company submitted proposals for a revised strategy for the company. These proposals provided that the company would exit certain tourism and enterprise support activities and they would focus on strategic value added activities that would contribute to the economic development of the region. Following an examination of these proposals and after consultation with the company and other stakeholders, I decided on the revised mandate for the company. The main features of the new mandate are: the company will place an increased focus on the regional development aspects of its mandate and special emphasis will be placed on addressing the needs of the less-developed parts of the mid-west region; the company will retain ownership of industrial property in the Shannon region and responsibility for managing the Shannon free zone and will have responsibility for providing appropriate property solutions for both indigenous and overseas enterprises; the support functions in relation to indigenous enterprises in the Shannon region that are carried out by Shannon Development on behalf of EI will revert to EI; the IDA will assume responsibility for promoting investment in, and supporting, FDI companies in the Shannon free zone; and the company will produce a new three year corporate plan to reflect the new mandate and this will be reviewed annually.

All of the interested parties in the region agree that Shannon Airport is vital to its economic well-being and that Shannon Development is ideally placed to support the new Airport Authority and to complement its activities. How this should be done will, however, have to await consideration by the Minister for Transport of the authority's business plan. Similarly, any changes to Shannon Development's tourism remit will be decided by the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism in consultation with the company.

The Enterprise Strategy Group recommendation, which is now Government policy, that the company disengage from industrial development activities, which should be left to the national agencies, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland, was central to my consideration of this issue. Shannon Development supported this recommendation and other regional interests also favoured the streamlining of industrial development functions in the region.

I recently met members of the board and I believe there is both support for the new mandate and energy present to implement it. Discussions between departmental officials and the executive have also commenced in this regard. I am also facilitating clarification of specific elements of the new mandate between my departmental officials and the main trade union, SIPTU.