Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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323. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the number of applicants and participants in all Brexit schemes and supports provided by her Department or agencies under her remit; the amount allocated and expended to each such scheme in each year since being established in tabular form. [48903/18]

Lisa Chambers (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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327. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the take up of all Brexit supports since they opened and that fall under the remit of her Department in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48940/18]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 323 and 327 together.

My Department and its agencies are providing extensive supports to ensure that businesses are prepared for Brexit. These supports aim to assist businesses in identifying key risk areas and the practical preparatory actions to be taken over the coming months.

In addition to direct supports to firms, I and my Department have been developing a number of schemes to mitigate against the potential effects of Brexit.  In late November 2017 a Rescue and Restructuring (R&R) Scheme was approved by the EU Commission. This scheme has been put in place as it is considered prudent to have contingency measures in place so that we can respond swiftly to changing circumstances as necessary.

The Brexit Loan Scheme was launched in April 2018 and provides affordable working capital financing to eligible businesses that are either currently impacted by Brexit or will be in the future, to help them innovate, change or adapt to mitigate their Brexit challenge.  

In May 2018, the Rescue and Restructuring scheme was extended to include temporary restructuring aid for enterprises experiencing acute liquidity needs.  The aid is granted in the form of loans repayable over a period of 18 months.  Together with the Brexit Loan Scheme, this temporary restructuring aid will provide valuable stabilisation to businesses as they respond to the immediate and long-term impacts of the UK’s decision to leave the EU.

The Future Growth Loan Scheme was announced in Budget 2019. The scheme will be available to eligible Irish businesses, including those in the primary agriculture and seafood sectors, to support strategic, long-term investment in a post-Brexit environment.  It will provide low cost loans for terms of between 8-10 years, which is not readily available on the market.  It is expected that this scheme will be operational in Q1 2019.

Local Enterprise Office funding has been increased and this increase is being used to assist micro-enterprises in becoming more competitive and better able to cope with the changing environment in which they are operating. The suite of LEO Brexit supports includes tailored mentoring to address Brexit-related business challenges and targeted training on specific Brexit challenges.

Enterprise Ireland has established a Prepare for Brexit online portal and communications campaign, as well as an online "Brexit SME Scorecard" to help Irish businesses self-assess their exposure to Brexit and a "Be Prepared Grant" to support SME clients in planning to mitigate risks arising from Brexit.  It has also launched a new Eurozone Strategy to help SMEs broaden their export footprint beyond the UK. 

InterTrade Ireland's Brexit advisory service was established in May 2017 to provide a focal point for SMEs working to navigate the changes in cross-Border trading relationships brought about by Brexit negotiations.

As part of awareness-raising activities, EI has rolled out regional Brexit Advisory clinics throughout the year.  My Department and its agencies have also participated in the Getting Ireland Brexit Ready roadshow to inform businesses of supports available to them to prepare for Brexit.I will continue to ensure we provide the supports and services best suited to the needs of enterprise over the coming months.

The information is set out in the following table:

Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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324. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the number of firms that have applied for working capital under the Brexit loan scheme; the number of firms that have been sanctioned financing to date; and the value of same. [48875/18]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Brexit Loan Scheme provides affordable working capital to eligible businesses with up to 499 employees that are or will be impacted by Brexit and meet the scheme criteria. The €23 million exchequer funding (€14 million from my Department and €9 million from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine) has been leveraged to provide a fund of up to €300 million.

It has been designed to assist eligible Irish businesses in the short-term to deal with the challenges of Brexit, which include the pressures of increased market instability and currency volatility. The scheme is open to both State Agency clients and businesses that do not have any relationship with State Agencies. Sole traders may also apply.

The scheme features a two-stage application process. First, businesses must apply to the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) to confirm their eligibility for the scheme. This application process requires businesses to use guidelines provided on the SBCI website to determine if they are eligible, and if so, to complete the eligibility form. As part of the process, businesses must submit a business plan, demonstrating the means by which they intend to innovate, change or adapt to meet the challenges posed by Brexit. Guidance is available on the SBCI website on how to complete a business plan. The SBCI assess the applications and successful applicants receive an eligibility reference number.

Successful applicants can then apply for a loan under the scheme with one of the participating finance providers. Participating finance providers are the Bank of Ireland, Ulster Bank and Allied Irish Bank. Approval of loans under the Brexit Loan Scheme is subject to the finance providers’ own credit policies and procedures.

The scheme was launched in March this year and, as of 23 November, there have been 307 applications received, of which 270 have been approved and 54 loans progressed to sanction at finance provider level to a value of €12.51 million. These figures were issued as an interim update, more detailed information is available on a quarterly basis.