Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

26. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her plans to deal with the high level of unemployment in County Longford and Mullingar as confirmed in recent reports. [30501/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Government policy to reduce unemployment is two-fold.  First, through policies set out in the national Action Plan for Jobs, to create an environment in which business can succeed and create jobs and second, through Pathways to work to ensure that as many of the new jobs and other vacancies that arise in our economy are filled by people taken from the Live Register.

The Midlands Action Plan for Jobs is another key Government response to supporting employment growth in the Midlands region.

The core objective of the Plan is to see a further 14,000 at work in the region by 2020.

The second progress report on the implementation of the Action Plan has just been published and shows that good progress is being made. Almost 7,600 jobs were created in the Midlands since the Regional Action Plans for Jobs initiative was launched in January 2015.

The unemployment rate in the region has fallen from 12.5% in Q1 2015 to 7.8% in Q1 2017, compared to a State average in Q1 2017 of 6.7%.

Live register numbers have fallen in County Longford and Mullingar by over 13% and over 11% respectively in the past 12 months.

The Enterprise Agencies are working hard to drive job creation in the region.

Enterprise Ireland companies currently support 2,886 jobs in Longford and 3,653 jobs in Westmeath. 

Total employment among LEOs Longford and Westmeath clients were 1,061 and 1,375 respectively at the end of 2016.

Longford and Westmeath are together home to 17 existing IDA Ireland clients who between them employ over 3,200 people.

To support regional enterprise development, additional funding of up to €60m is being rolled out by Enterprise Ireland to support the development and implementation of collaborative and innovative projects.

In addition, additional funding of €150m is being made available to the IDA to support its Regional Property Programme.