Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 176 to 179, inclusive, together.

I was delighted to announce in the Budget that, in partnership with my colleague, An Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation Frances Fitzgerald TD, we had agreed to establish a new “Brexit Loan Scheme” which will provide affordable, flexible financing to Irish businesses that are either currently impacted by Brexit or who will be in the future.

The new Brexit Loan Scheme aims to make up to €300 million of working capital finance available to SMEs and mid-cap businesses (up to 499 employees). Given their unique exposure to the UK market, my Department’s funding (€9 million out of total public funding of €23 million) ensures that at least 40% of the fund will be available to food businesses. 

The finance will be easier to access, more competitively priced (at a proposed maximum interest rate of 4%), and at more favourable terms than current offerings. This will give Brexit-impacted businesses time and space to adapt and to grow into the future. Applications will be cleared for Scheme eligibility through the SBCI and applicants must be exposed to the current or potential impacts of Brexit and submit a business sustainability plan which demonstrates how they plan to respond to Brexit. Loans must be for the purpose of supporting working capital or cash flow needs and will be provided by commercial lenders, subject to normal lending criteria. Further details of the loans will be provided over the coming weeks.

The success of our “Agriculture Cashflow Support Loan Scheme” has been recognised and it provides a template for this new Scheme. Drawdowns under the Agriculture Cashflow Support Loan Scheme are nearing completion. Due to the different State Aid legislation covering primary production, the Brexit Loan Scheme announced in the Budget will not be available to farmers and fishermen. Therefore I was very pleased to announce that I have secured funding of €25 million for my Department to facilitate the development of a new Brexit response loan schemes for farmers, fishermen and food businesses in 2018. Further details will be announced in due course. 

We all understand the unique exposure of the agri-food sector to Brexit impact. Uncertainty about the final outcome can make planning for the future difficult. But one thing we can be sure of is that both food businesses and farmers need to focus on competitiveness and innovation in order to survive these challenges and grow their business sustainably in the future. Supporting lower cost flexible finance is a key Government response to assist the sector in this process.