Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 122: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the new measures he proposes to introduce to tackle a growing problem (details supplied), particularly in the manufacturing sector; and if he plans to introduce new supports or initiatives to the area. [5866/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Over the last number of years there has been churn in employment as is typical of a developed, open, and dynamic economy such as Ireland's. Ireland is no longer a low cost economy and manufacturers in particular are facing increased competition from producers in lower cost economies. Other sectors, especially the services sector, are providing significant new employment opportunities. Since 1997, over half a million new jobs were created in Ireland and the number in employment now exceeds 2.1 million.

The manufacturing sector in Ireland has evolved noticeably since 2000, in terms of the composition of industry and the nature of activities, and is likely to continue to do so. Manufacturing continues to be a significant employer accounting directly for 11% of total employment and a significant amount of associated services employment. In order to sustain and grow the sector, the Irish based manufacturing enterprises will have to continue the progression to high value added sectors and activities, and continue to increase productivity through investments in human capital, technology and innovation. Irish manufacturers who engage in specialised, sophisticated, high technology and value added activities can continue to compete successfully on international markets. These sectors often require specialised skilled staff, specialised technologies and flexible operations, and other factors which are not readily available in many low cost economies, such as modern IP protection laws, a business friendly regulatory environment, etc.

Many companies in Ireland have built world-class high value added manufacturing and services capabilities, particularly in food, information and communications technology, software development, pharmaceuticals and medical technologies. Ireland's existing expertise provides a base for continued wealth creation over the next decade and we envisage that Ireland's manufacturing base will continue to move up the value chain. As part of the commitments included under the partnership agreement 'Towards 2016', I established the High-Level Manufacturing Group, to review the challenges facing the manufacturing sector and to identify further measures to meet those challenges. This Group is currently in the process of finalising a report outlining their views and recommendations to ensure that manufacturing continues to play a major role in our economy and will report back to Partnership within the next two months.

The new Programme for Government contains a range of commitments focused on maintaining and enhancing our framework competitive conditions, and promoting new areas of competitive advantage, including developing our R&D base, investing in critical physical and communications infrastructures, and promoting tertiary education and lifelong learning. Over the period of the new National Development Plan the Government will provide €3.3bn investment specifically to support the development of the indigenous and FDI enterprise base.