Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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460. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the action he or his agencies have taken since the announcement of the closure of a company (details supplied) in County Mayo in August last; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32079/15]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The current position concerning the plant in question is that prior to the closure, Enterprise Ireland visited the facility on 18 August and a full tour of the facility was conducted. The Agency was also in contact with the Receiver on 19 August concerning facilitating the sale of the business. In addition, Enterprise Ireland contacted its client companies in the bakery business in an effort to find a buyer for the business and has also indicated that it will market the facility to its overseas investors.

Unfortunately as part of the receivership process there were no bids for the Ballinrobe facilities.

All the supports of the state will be made available to support the workers, including the services of Intreo, Solas and the National Employment Rights Authority.

Enterprise Ireland and the LEO Mayo are available to meet with employees who may wish to start their own business. However as yet, Enterprise Ireland is not aware of any potential startup from the former workers at the plant.

Enterprise Ireland continues to work with its existing clients and potential startups from the Ballinrobe area. Enterprise Ireland client companies in County Mayo increased their employment by 73 to total 3,286 full-time jobs in 2014.

The Local Enterprise Offices - or LEOs - are the ‘first-stop-shop’ for support to anyone wishing to start or expand a business, focussing on the micro-enterprise sector (10 employees or less). The LEOs can provide information, advice and guidance on the range of State supports to enterprise and signpost customers to the appropriate contacts across the various agencies that provide them. Further information can be found on the LEO website at www.localenterprise.ie/mayo. In 2014, a total of 66 new full and part-time jobs were created in companies supported by the LEO Mayo, bringing the total number of employees in these companies to 1,060.

IDA Ireland’s strategy, WINNING Foreign Direct Investment 2015 - 2019, sets out challenging targets, including the creation of 80,000 direct jobs in 900 investment projects over the period, bringing total FDI employment to 209,000 by the end of the period. Under the program, IDA is targeting a minimum increase in investment of 30% to 40% in each Region outside Dublin including the West Region. IDA Ireland client companies in County Mayo increased their employment by 204 to total 3,932 jobs in 2014.

In February, the Government announced details of the Action Plan for Jobs: Regional initiative which seeks to build on the existing strengths and assets of each region to maximise enterprise growth and job creation. This initiative will see Action Plans drawn up for eight regions, supported by a package of up to €250 million in funding over the next five years.

The Action Plan for Jobs West Region is currently being finalised and is expected to be published shortly. A key target in the Plan is to increase employment in the region by between 10 and 15% on 2014 employment levels in the period to 2020 and to ensure that the unemployment rate in the Region lies within 1% of the national average.

I am sure that the measures outlined in both the Action Plan for Jobs and the Regional Action Plans, together with other policies being pursued by the State agencies, will continue to support enterprise development and provide employment opportunities in County Mayo. In that context, the State agencies will continue to work closely with each other, and with local interests, to support an integrated approach to job creation in Ballinrobe.