Written answers

Tuesday, 14 July 2015

Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation

Local Enterprise Offices

Photo of Dominic HanniganDominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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367. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the steps that the Meath local enterprise office will take over the remaining months of 2015 to increase the number of net jobs that the office is helping to create in County Meath; if he will outline details of this plan in his response; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29095/15]

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The Local Enterprise Office in Meath is the First Stop Shopfor anyone seeking information and support on starting or growing a business. Meath LEO provides services under four main headings:

- Business Information and Advisory Services;

- Enterprise Support Services;

- Entrepreneurship Support Services;

- Local Enterprise Development Services.

The stated vision for Meath LEO in 2015 is to support the start-up and growth of innovative, competitive and profitable small business enterprise in Meath that create sustainable employment and contribute to the growth and development of a successful, robust and diversified economy.

Meath LEO offers a range of supports to anyone interested in starting or expanding a business. The financial supports available include priming grants, business expansion grants and feasibility grants as well as access to loans from MicroFinance Ireland loans. There is a core budget allocation of €469,000 for Meath LEO in 2015 for expenditure on direct grant aid and the delivery of other supports such Start Your own Business courses, Mentoring Programmes, Procurement and Tendering training, Accounting and Book-Keeping training, Financial Management advice, Food Academy Programme, Social Media training etc.

In addition to the normal suite of financial supports Meath LEO is running the competition, Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur 2015, in the Meath area with an investment fund of €50,000 available to three category winners i.e. Best Business Idea, Best Start-Up Business and Best Established Business.

Meath LEO is also administering the Trading Online Voucher Scheme (TOVS) in the Meath area. This is designed to encourage more small businesses to trade online. The scheme provides individual qualifying businesses with matched funding of up to €2,500 to be used to build or enhance the online trading component of their website. The scheme aims to encourage the development of online engagement by Irish small businesses through the adoption of digital services or skills and as a consequence to reach new markets and expand their export potential and job growth potential.

Meath LEO also provides an enhanced guidance and referral service on local and national supports such as those available from Revenue, Dept of Social Protection, Microfinance Ireland, the Credit Review Office, Skillnets, Fáilte Ireland, NSAI, Education and Training Boards etc.

At the end of 2014 there were 806 jobs in LEO client companies in Meath with a net jobs growth of 154. I am confident that the totality of the service offered by Meath LEO will lead to an increase both in job creation and also in entrepreneurial activity across the County throughout 2015 and beyond.

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