Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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64. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the degree to which innovation and technology remain central to job creating opportunities indigenously or through foreign direct investment; her views on whether particular initiatives are required; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30674/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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67. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her plans for continued industrial expansion utilising innovation and technology to the greatest possible extent and ensuring the creation of adequate job opportunities in the future; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30679/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 64 and 67 together.

My Department recognises the key role that innovation has played in Ireland’s economic recovery to date. It contributes significantly to job creation, exports and investment, and the competitiveness of the indigenous enterprise base, and also to embedding the foreign direct investment base in Ireland.

It is clear that a strong interdependence exists therefore between science, technology and innovation policy and enterprise policy. My Department has developed its Innovation 2020 strategy for Research and Development, Science and Technology and its Enterprise 2025 policy side by side. A critical objective for my Department is delivering on the actions and commitments set out in Innovation 2020.

A report published by my Department in October 2016, Economic and Enterprise Impacts from Public Investment in R&D in Ireland, focuses on the public R&D investments that are aimed at achieving enterprise impacts. These relate to investments by this Department, through Enterprise Ireland (EI), IDA Ireland, Science Foundation Ireland, and also through the Irish Research Council and the Higher Education Authority.

This study has shown that investment in R&D translates into improved job creation and enterprise performance. Among the findings are:

- Firms that invested in R&D grew employment by 14% between 2000 and 2014 while those that did not invest in R&D saw employment decline by 40%

- R&D performing companies grew exports by 181% between 2003 and 2014 compared to a loss of 42% in exports for non-R&D performing companies over the same period

- R&D activity was identified as being one characteristic of Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland client firms that has driven growth in sales and exports since 2003. During the recession these firms exhibited greater resilience than non-R&D active firms and have increased their contributions to sales, exports and employment

- For Enterprise Ireland client firms funded through its R&D Fund scheme, there was an 8% growth in net employment (22,003 jobs to 23,739 jobs) between 2002 and 2012. In comparison there was a 6.2% decline in employment in the total Enterprise Ireland client base over the 2002 to 2012 period (131,144 jobs to 119,935 jobs).

EI has played a particularly important role in supporting job creation in Ireland. Between 2014 and 2016 employment in EI backed companies reached 200,000. In its new strategy 2017 - 2020, Building Scale, Expanding Reach, EI is aiming to increase this further with a new target to create an additional 60,000 new jobs by 2020.

The Strategy also aims to drive innovation in Irish enterprise to unprecedented levels through new supports to reach the target of €1.25bn in R&D expenditure by its client companies per annum by 2020.

Enterprise Ireland operates a range of supports to help companies engage with third level researchers to undertake collaborative research for the benefit of companies. Again, evidence shows that R&D active firms who collaborate with the Higher Education sector do significantly better in terms of job creation and exports than those that do not collaborate.

A further aspect of Enterprise Ireland’s work is to extract maximum value from Ireland’s investment in the research system – the objective is to secure commercial purpose, leading to jobs and sales by transferring technologies and ideas developed in Irish research institutions out into firms.  Knowledge Transfer Ireland is instrumental in this area.

Going forward, in order to support companies to increase job creation and exports, EI will continue funding its critical existing programmes along with new supports for Innovation such as:

-The Business Innovation Initiative (BII) aimed at driving innovation beyond selling products based on technical innovations, providing more customer focussed process and service solutions;

- The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Initiative which is a cross-government process that allows public bodies to use public procurement to source R&D and innovative solutions to solve identified ‘challenges’.  This provides significant business opportunities for innovation focused companies;

- New initiatives to equip graduates and researchers in the higher education system with the key skills required by the enterprise base.

As the outcome of the Brexit vote forces Irish companies to employ R&D in a bid to protect their current exports in the UK and to explore different markets, innovation will continue to play a central role in growing exports as well as employment.  To address this and in addition to the new supports listed above, Enterprise Ireland will also:

- Help companies develop their internal innovation capabilities and capacities through training and assistance with new key Hires and access to Innovation expertise and capabilities at home and abroad.

- Help companies increase their investment in Innovation (up by 50% by 2020) with the introduction of the new Innovation toolkit which includes:

- Redevelopment of EI Research, Development & Innovation (RDI) Offer

- The Health Innovation Hub – a new support to unlock and focus the Irish Healthcare system’s ability to drive healthcare Innovation through access to companies

- Support to provide Multinational Sub supply and partnering opportunities for SMEs.

- Increased focus on assisting young Irish disruptive technology companies to access the significant EU H2020 SME instrument.

- Support to enable Irish companies to access funding support and contracts from H2020 and the European Space Agency respectively. 

- Extensions of the Campus Incubation facilities (In Athlone, Waterford and Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology) to provide more support for regional start-ups.

- Access to key talent: Enterprise Ireland will help with finding, hiring, growing and reaching impactful innovation people particularly through the Marie Curie Co-Fund which will enable 50 leading edge international researchers to work for Irish companies and a new offer to better condition new Graduates to work in industry so that they can contribute to companies growth more quickly and effectively.

IDA Ireland’s main objective is to encourage investment into Ireland by foreign-owned companies. The Agency reported a second, consecutive record year in 2016. 199,877 people are now employed in IDA Ireland supported client companies, up from 188,035 in 2015. This is the highest level of employment in the Agency’s history.

The area of RDI is of strategic importance to IDA Ireland. A company decision to invest in RDI may be to support improvement in productivity; to develop a strengthened reputation for quality or to develop new products and services.

IDA Ireland’s strategy Winning FDI 2015-2019 outlines a plan to support clients in creating 80,000 new jobs and increase employment in the client portfolio to 209,000 by 2019. Support for RDI will be key to achieving these targets. Research, development and innovation investments not only embed existing FDI operations and employment but pave the way for future investment, job creation and export growth. As the global battle for FDI intensifies, investment in research and development will become even more critical to attracting and retaining FDI companies.

The increase in RDI investment since 2000 has improved our attractiveness as an FDI location. 60% (just under €60m in 2015) of IDA’s total grant-aid budget is allocated to RDI projects each year. This investment leverages RDI expenditure of €600m by IDA clients for these approved projects and an overall annual spend by IDA supported companies of €1.53bn per annum on RDI. This has the effect of anchoring FDI clients and securing sustainable employment and related benefits to the Irish economy.

The National Support System for Horizon 2020, the EU Framework Programme for research and innovation, is coordinated by Enterprise Ireland. Horizon 2020 is one of seven flagship initiatives in Europe 2020, the European Union's ten-year jobs and growth strategy. It has a budget of almost €75 billion and runs over the period 2014-2020. Horizon 2020 includes a programme tailored specifically to the needs of SMEs, namely the SME Instrument, which has €3 billion in funding available over the period 2014-2020. The SME Instrument helps high-potential SMEs to develop ground-breaking innovative ideas for products, services or processes that are ready to face global market competition.

Companies in Ireland (both foreign-owned and Irish-owned) that compete successfully for funding from Horizon 2020 will boost their innovative capability and competitiveness which in turn will deliver strong national economic impacts, including job creation.

Ireland has won €424 million from 2014 to May 2017 in competitive, EU funding from Horizon 2020. Higher Education Institutions accounted for €233 million of the total and companies, €151 million. The funding for companies included €94 million awarded to SMEs. Ireland has the highest success rate in Europe for the Horizon 2020 SME Instrument with a 16% success rate, compared to a European average of 6%.

A budget of €30 billion has been allocated to the final three years of Horizon 2020, which will provide significant funding opportunities for companies in Ireland that participate in the programme over the period 2018-2020.

The recent national ex-post evaluation of the Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7) estimated that the European Commission contribution of €625M to Ireland from 2007 to 2013 would lead to an estimated 2,000 jobs created per year. It is expected that such figures will grow considerably in the context of Ireland’s current target to double participation in the period 2014-2020.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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65. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the extent to which she expects support from the EU Commission in the context of innovation and technology in respect of job retention or job creation here; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30675/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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Innovation is a key mechanism by which companies can gain competitive advantage. Innovation can lower costs, increase productivity and add value to a company's products or services. A competitive advantage is necessary for success in global markets, which for a small open economy like Ireland, is necessary for creating sustainable, quality employment.

Innovation 2020, the national strategy for Research and Innovation, which was launched in December 2015, sets out the Government's ambition for Ireland to become a global innovation leader. International cooperation is an integral part of that strategy. International cooperation maximises the impact of international and national investment in research and innovation. It contributes to the development of Ireland as a research and enterprise partner, underscoring and enhancing the excellence of our research and innovation system and facilitating engagement with the Irish diaspora. A key plank of our engagement in international cooperation is participation of our researchers and enterprise in the EU Framework Programmes for Research and Innovation.

Horizon 2020 is the current Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. It is one of seven flagship initiatives in Europe 2020, the European Union’s ten-year jobs and growth strategy. H2020 has a budget of €75 billion and runs from 2014 to 2020. H2020 funding (grant aid) is awarded on a competitive basis to researchers and companies across three main pillars: Excellent Science; Leadership in Industrial Technologies; and Societal Challenges.

Ireland has won €424 million from 2014 to May 2017 in competitive, EU funding from Horizon 2020. Higher Education Institutions accounted for €233 million of the total and companies, €151 million. The funding for companies included €94 million awarded to SMEs.

A dedicated SME Instrument within Horizon 2020 has a budget of €3 billion to support high-potential SMEs to develop ground-breaking innovative ideas for products, services or processes that are ready to face global market competition. Irish SMEs have recorded the highest success rate in the SME Instrument at 16%, compared with an EU average of 6%.

My department chairs the Horizon 2020 High Level Group, a cross-Government committee tasked with coordinating Ireland's participation in Horizon 2020. In addition, Enterprise Ireland leads a National Support System that assists researchers and companies to participate in the programme.

In the autumn the European Commission will launch the Horizon 2020 work programme for 2018-2020. This will have a total budget of €30 billion and will provide significant funding opportunities for companies in Ireland. The National Support System is actively preparing for that programme in order to maximize the participation by researchers and companies.