Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 268: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation in view of the projection by the Economic and Social Research Institution that 150,000 persons will emigrate from Ireland by 2015, with a sizable number of these being graduates; his plans to halt this brain drain; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38185/10]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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The Government is pursuing a whole of enterprise approach to employment creation through support for Irish firms and winning foreign direct investment, to sustain and expand job opportunities. Many jobs that are being created are providing employment opportunities for our graduates.

My Department's agencies are playing, and will continue to play, a key role in this regard, for example:

§ IDA has already won 75 investments this year spread around the country, with a good mix of new companies starting up and expansions of existing companies.

§ Enterprise Ireland has supported client companies in winning new exports and have announced 700 new jobs so far this year.

§ SFI is engaged with a range of innovative Irish and multinational companies and investing €45 million in supporting over 300 researchers. In the next 6 months, SFI will support three competency centres, a new energy research centre and collaborate with eighty eight companies to deliver sustainable jobs into the future.

§ The County Enterprise Boards are supporting existing small business owners and those who want to start new businesses.

The Enterprise agencies are all taking a range of actions to support client companies in ways best suited to their needs – marketing, training, access to finance and advice across a range of issues.

In addition to these initiatives, Enterprise Ireland operates the Graduates 4 International Growth Programme. The Programme aims to place 50 top-level college graduates with ambitious internationally trading companies. Participants will be based for a minimum of 12 months in an overseas market. Enterprise Ireland also operates the International Graduate Programme through which it employs 15 graduates for 2 years in its overseas office network. I am also looking at how we can increase the number of graduates working with the enterprise agencies and their client companies.

The Department of Education and Skills offers the Work Placement Programme, which, provides up to 9 months work experience to 1,000 unemployed graduates. At the end of September 2010, 944 graduates had commenced their placements under this programme. The Work Placement Programme will continue to provide a vital opportunity for unemployed graduates to gain valuable work experience that will keep them closer to the labour market and will assist them in securing employment in the future.

Other initiatives, which support job creation, include the Employer Jobs (PRSI) Incentive Scheme and the three-year corporate and capital tax exemption for new start-up companies in 2010.

We are positioning Ireland to be successful in selling our goods and services abroad, winning global investment and attracting visitors from around the world. This is the most effective way to create sustainable, quality jobs for all our citizens. Indeed, it has been estimated that there will be a need to recruit up to 96,000 people on average every year up to 2014.