Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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138. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her views on the policy alleviation proposal in the latest publication by an organisation (details supplied) regarding protecting businesses from a hard Brexit; the approximate cost of such a proposal; and if the government is considering implementing this. [29740/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I welcome the publication to which the Deputy refers as another useful contribution to our work in this area.

My Department has been working with the Department of Finance, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Enterprise Ireland and the SBCI to build an understanding of the business needs of companies in adapting to the challenges posed by Brexit and to develop appropriate and targeted responses to support them.

Based on this work, we are progressing the development of a proposed Brexit Working Capital Guarantee Scheme and we are scoping out the need for a longer term Business Development Loan Scheme which would assist firms in investing for a post-Brexit environment. Development of these proposed responses is at an early stage, and is subject to resources being agreed as part of the annual budget process.

These measures are being considered in the context of existing State Aid rules leveraging support from EU sources such as the European Investment Fund.

As the situation evolves, and we get a better idea of impacts on enterprise in a post Brexit landscape, we will almost certainly need to have further discussions with the Commission in order to ensure that we take sufficient measures in good time so that our most exposed and impacted companies and sectors do not suffer irreparable damage as a result of the UK’s decision to leave the EU.