Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 413: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his plans for job creation in east Cork; and the impediments to job creation his Department has identified in the region. [3512/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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State support for enterprise and job creation is channelled through the industrial development agencies. While I may give general policy directives to the agencies, I am precluded under the Acts from giving directives regarding individual undertakings, or from giving preference to one area over others.

A range of strategies, programmes and financial incentives are in place to promote economic development that will give rise to sustainable employment throughout east Cork.

The strategies and programmes of the development agencies are very much in line with the National Development Plan and the National Spatial Strategy, which have been specifically designed to overcome any impediments that may exist to economic development and job creation across the country as a whole.

The enterprise development agencies have seen the emergence of an economic corridor along the N25 with the initial development of Little Island many years ago followed by new developments at Eastgate, Fota Business Park, Carrigtwohill and Midleton. IDA has also been instrumental in attracting additional client investment to the area with the development of the IDA Business and Technology Park in Carrigtwohill. More recently, Apex — a fund administration financial services company announced their decision to locate in Midleton with the creation of 40 jobs. IDA Ireland has found that the availability of quality property solutions in the East Cork area has proved attractive to visiting IDA clients.

In general, the east Cork area has benefited greatly from investment in recent times and, in order to build on our existing successes, the focus should be on building critical mass at regional, as opposed to local, level.