Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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79. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the degree to which she continues to monitor business openings and opportunities arising from Brexit with a view to maximisation of employment here post Brexit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30620/18]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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As Minister, I am fully focused on ensuring that we are in a position to make the most of any potential Brexit-related opportunities. I am also fully confident that my Department and the enterprise agencies under my remit are doing everything they can to capitalise on any opportunities that Brexit presents.

In Budget 2018 a further additional €3m in pay funding was provided to the enterprise agencies to support recruitment and assist in their response to the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. That additional €3 million will support the recruitment of 40-50 staff across the Department and its Agencies to meet the Brexit challenge. This brings the number of new Brexit related staff posts to around 100 in the last two years and demonstrates the Department’s determination to ensure that it, together with its Offices and Agencies, are sufficiently resourced to meet the Brexit challenge.

As per its Brexit-strategy, IDA Ireland has continued to engage with its clients - supported by a targeted marketing campaign - to highlight Ireland’s advantages in a post-Brexit context. The reasons why companies invest in Ireland are well-known: the availability of talent, the ease of doing business, a competitive and transparent taxation regime, positive demographics, a common law system and, critically, Ireland’s continued access to EU markets. This approach has worked well as IDA Ireland has secured a substantial number of Brexit-related investments in 2017 and 2018. 

The IDA’s mid-year results for 2018 clearly indicate that we can continue to rely on the selling points that make investing in Ireland so attractive in the first place. In fact, the Agency has indicated that in excess of 40 companies across the Financial Services, Life Sciences, Technology and Engineering sectors have chosen Ireland as a result of Brexit. I can state with certainty that as Brexit negotiations intensify in the time ahead, IDA Ireland will be continuing its efforts to attract mobile investment by highlighting Ireland’s suitability as a location for international business and by constantly engaging with clients across its entire portfolio.

In addition, IDA Ireland continues to work on ensuring that the Agency’s strategy is fit for purpose in light of Brexit. In 2018, the agency has reorganised its European footprint, with the United Kingdom now being treated as a separate territory from the rest of Europe and continental European business being managed from the Frankfurt office.

Enterprise Ireland also provides a range of supports that exist to help companies plan for both the opportunities and risks that Brexit poses. While the outcome of the Brexit negotiations remains uncertain, Enterprise Ireland is actively supporting Irish companies to respond to the challenges and opportunities posed by Brexit and to take the necessary steps to ensure they are more innovative, competitive and market diversified to tackle the challenges ahead.

Budget 2018 also contained some important pro-business measures to help companies compete in the face of ‘Brexit’ including the €300m Brexit Loan Scheme which will provide affordable financing to Irish businesses that are either currently impacted by Brexit or will be in the future. It will be open to all trading SMEs and large firms employing less than 500 people.