Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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Question 122: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she will support a matter (details supplied). [45541/08]

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The role of the 35 County and City Enterprise Boards is to provide support for small businesses with 10 employees or fewer in the start-up and expansion phases, to promote and develop indigenous micro-enterprise potential and to stimulate economic activity and entrepreneurship at local level throughout the country. The CEBs deliver a series of Programmes to underpin this role and they can provide both financial and non-financial assistance to a project promoter.

The forms of CEB direct financial assistance which are available to small businesses, subject to certain restrictions, include Capital Grants, Employment Grants and Feasibility Study Grants. The criteria under which financial assistance is available is based primarily on factors such as the sector of the economy in which an enterprise is operating or intends to operate and the size, or proposed size, of the enterprise. The enterprise must be in the commercial sphere, must demonstrate a market for the proposed product/service, must have a capacity for growth and new job creation and must not employ more than 10 people. The CEBs give priority to enterprises in the manufacturing or internationally traded services sector and the CEBs must always give consideration to any potential for deadweight and displacement arising from a proposed enterprise.

The provision of non-financial assistance which CEBs can offer can take the form of a wide range of business advice and information services, management capability training and development programmes, e-Commerce training initiatives, mentoring services and the delivery of targeted Programmes to promote female entrepreneurship. In common with the other enterprise agencies which operate under the aegis of my Department the CEBs also provide general advice and guidance on a range of developmental matters relevant to small businesses such as mentoring, business training and business advice all of which help to stimulate indigenous enterprise creation. I would suggest therefore that the person concerned should, in the first instance, make direct contact with their local CEB and explore what level of assistance, if any, may be available to them. Contact details for individual CEBs can be found by accessing the following website; www.enterpriseboards.ie.

The Government has also made very considerable progress on the implementation of the Small Business Forum Report's recommendations. This progress is reflected through a substantial package of financial measures and Schemes introduced to assist the small business sector over the last two years, including fiscal measures in the 2007 and 2008 Finance Acts. These measures were designed to help all small and medium sized businesses across the country and include:

the extension and radical improvement of the Business Expansion and Seed Capital Schemes up to 2013;

important increases in the VAT Cash Accounting — now €1m and VAT Registration Turnover Thresholds — now €75,000 have been introduced in order to simplify administration and reduce working capital requirements on small businesses;

changes to the preliminary tax obligations of certain companies so that small companies are now permitted to calculate their preliminary tax payments based on 100% of the prior-period tax liability if their tax liability for the prior period did not exceed a certain threshold — now €200,000;

new companies, which do not expect their tax liability for the first year to exceed €200,000, are no longer obliged to pay preliminary tax in that first year.

The 2009 Budget in October announced tax relief measures for start up businesses by way of remission in Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax in the first 3 years for new and start-up businesses. These measures will help to grow small business and promote an entrepreneurial culture.