Dan Neville (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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159. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will provide details of the increase in employment numbers by multinationals in County Limerick, from 2011 to 2014; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16375/15]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The Annual Employment Survey which reports on jobs created and lost in companies that are supported by enterprise development agencies show that employment in IDA Ireland client companies in Limerick, city and county, rose from 6,498 at the end of 2010 to 7,906 in 2014 an increase of over 22%. The Survey also shows that the number of IDA Ireland client companies in Limerick rose from 40 to 48. The tabular statement gives employment details in respect of each of the years 2010 to 2014 inclusive. The investment projects that IDA is seeking to attract to Limerick today are much different to those of the past. IDA’s strategy is to re-position Limerick as part of the wider mid west Region as a hotspot for knowledge based industry, while focusing on marketing Limerick as a key location for investment by building on the strengths already evident in the county.

To support this strategy, IDA Ireland works closely with educational institutions in the region to develop the skill sets necessary to attract high value-added employment to the county. IDA is also working closely with its existing client base to encourage additional investment, particularly in activities such as R&D, customer support and back office functions. IDA works closely with Shannon Commercial Properties in the provision of suitable property solutions for potential investors to the county.

Limerick’s FDI base is concentrated for the most part in the city environs of the National Technology Park and Raheen. During 2014, there were 6 IDA investment announcements in the Limerick area. Johnson & Johnson - Information Technology Shared Services announced plans in December to create a development centre with 100 new jobs. Filtertek, based in Newcastlewest, announced its expansion of 35 new manufacturing roles over the next five years. Optel Vision, as part of its European expansion, will create 140 new jobs. ViaGoGo already has over 100 staff in Limerick and has announced plans to open a purpose-built international operations centre in Limerick. In April 2014, another Johnson & Johnson company, Ethicon Biosurgery Ireland, announced the development of an €80 million manufacturing facility in Plassey, which will result in approximately 270 new jobs. Finally, Kemp Technologies announced the creation of 50 new high-end technology-based positions over the next three years, almost trebling its workforce.

To date in 2015, there have already been 4 investment announcements by IDA Ireland client-companies in Limerick. As recently as last week, Dell announced that it is creating 100 new Innovation Technology R&D roles at its Limerick Campus. Northern Trust announced it is expanding its operation at its second site in Limerick, creating a further 300 jobs, bringing their Limerick operations to over 1,000 staff by 2017. Viagogo made its second announcement in six months, this time regarding its plansto double its workforce in Ireland over the next three years, taking it from 100 to over 200. AMAX, a leading manufacturer of dynamic Data Centre & Cloud, custom Server Appliance and High Performance Computing (HPC) solutions announced the creation of 100 jobs over the next five years.

Table showing the number of IDA client companies in limerick together with the numbers employed in those companies in each of the years 2010 to 2014