Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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96. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the extent to which the cost base in Irish industry remains competitive and in line with that in other adjoining and European jurisdictions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30611/14]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The National Competitiveness Council’s (NCC) Costs of Doing Business in Ireland 2014 report which was published last April compares Ireland’s cost competitiveness to a number of other regions - including a number of European countries - across a range of key business inputs. The report finds that Ireland’s costs base has improved across a range of metrics over the last number of years, making Irish firms more competitive internationally and making Ireland a more attractive location for firms to base their operations. However, the report also indicates that, despite these improvements, Ireland is still a high cost location for a number of key business inputs. The NCC points to upward pressures emerging in a number of areas, including labour costs, industrial electricity prices, transport costs and a range of business services.

The NCC emphasises the importance of Ireland’s international cost competitiveness remaining a key priority for Government and cautions that further structural change is required to ensure that costs do not escalate and erode the competitiveness gains which we have made in the last few years. The report also emphasises the importance of improving productivity performance.

The Action Plan for Jobs 2014 places a renewed emphasis on improving competitiveness across the whole of Government and has introduced a new arrangement under which the Cabinet Committee on Economic Recovery and Jobs reviews the competitiveness agenda on a quarterly basis to identify further actions that can be taken to improve Ireland’s competitiveness performance.