Written answers

Wednesday, 19 October 2022

Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment

Enterprise Support Services

Photo of Gerald NashGerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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54. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he plans to introduce a new fund for capital investment and expansion of existing enterprise centres; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52388/22]

Photo of Damien EnglishDamien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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Enterprise Centres provide important infrastructure for entrepreneurs and are an essential part of the start-up ecosystem across Ireland. The Centres, many of which are regionally based, provide space, mentoring and support to start-up founders and teams, helping them to scale internationally.

To date, my Department has provided funding of €250 million administered by Enterprise Ireland to support the establishment of some 270 Enterprise Centres throughout Ireland, of which approximately 40 of these Centres originated from the Regional Enterprise Plans.

This investment has enabled the establishment of physical space for entrepreneurs, start-ups, scaling companies, SMEs and a balance of small scale FDI. This has enabled the delivery of enterprise relevant programmes to companies and the provision of physical spaces to support remote working.

Since 2017, Enterprise Ireland has administered Departmental funding to 91 projects totalling €16.4 million under both the Regional Enterprise Development Fund and the Community Enterprise Centres Schemes.

€8.24 million in grants, administered through Enterprise Ireland, for 95 Enterprise Centres around the country was provided in November 2020 ensuring that these Enterprise Centres, many of which had been negatively impacted by COVID-19, could sustain their businesses, pivot and further develop their services, to continue to assist the development of our start-up companies. Together with the €5 million ‘Regional Development Feasibility Fund’ in 2022 which was available to promoters seeking to scope out and investigate the viability of larger full-scale projects such as remote working hubs.

In addition, over the next 20 years, advances in digital technologies will transform the enterprise potential across the country, particularly in our smaller towns and rural areas. To maximise those opportunities, co-working spaces (or “eHubs”), are envisaged under Project Ireland 2040 as part of an ongoing suite of measures to encourage greater levels of collaboration between entrepreneurs in accessing available supports and assistance in helping to make their businesses grow.

There are a broad range of other hub-type facilities, both publicly and privately funded, around the country including Community Enterprise Centres and incubator/accelerators that are being considered by the National Hub Network Working Group in their mapping of a national network of remote working facilities.

My Department in inputting to work underway led by the Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD) to map regional hubs and develop a National Hub Network strategy. 

The DCRD has invested significantly in remote working infrastructure & connectivity through the Broadband Connection Point Network initiative and a number of programmes and schemes including the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund and the Leader Programme.  

In addition, a further  allocation of €3 million in Budget 2023 was announced for the European Digital Innovation Hubs as part of the EU Digital Europe Programme which will provide over time a total of €13.4 million in funding to Ireland focused on bringing digital technology to businesses, SMEs, citizens and the public sector.

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