Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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559.To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of businesses in each local authority that have been approved for the increased cost of business grant; the total amount allocated in each local authority area, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32152/24]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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The Increased Cost of Business Scheme was announced in Budget 2024. It has been allocated €257m and it has been specifically designed to target smaller businesses.

It was initially opened for registrations between 14 March and 1 May. However on 15 May, I announced two changes to the Scheme as part of the wider SME package. Firstly registration was reopened for an additional two weeks to allow businesses another chance to sign up for the grant; and, secondly, those businesses operating in the hospitality and retail sectors that qualify for ICOB would receive a double, or second, payment under the scheme.

In total, there have been 72,719 registrations representing 81,650 businesses, or two-thirds of the potentially eligible businesses. All Local Authorities are doing everything possible to get payments out to qualifying businesses as quickly as possible. This is highlighted by the fact that almost €166million has now been paid out under the Scheme to over 67,000 businesses.

The requested figures are as follows:

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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560.To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will report on the digital transition fund; the amount allocated under the fund; the number of companies in each county that have been supported under the fund to date, in tabular for; the amount of funding allocated per county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32153/24]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Ireland’s National Digital Strategy “Harnessing Digital” sets out Ireland’s ambition to be a digital leader at the heart of European and global digital developments. To achieve this it is imperative that our enterprise base, particularly our SME base, accelerate the integration of digital technology across all business areas.

To support the digital transformation of our enterprise base, €85 million in funding is being made available through Ireland’s Resilience and Recovery Plan.

This includes direct funding to enterprise as well as funding to European Digital Innovation Hubs. These Hubs function as 'one-stop shops,' offering low/no cost access to technical expertise, innovation services, and training to support digital transformation to of SMEs.

Direct grant supports are available under the Digital Transition Fund from Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and údarás na Gaeltachta through a range of digital schemes which are aimed at enhancing the digitalisation of businesses, particularly SMEs, across various aspects, including products, processes, supply chains, and business models.

As of Q2 2024, 305 companies have been approved for direct-to-company funding to the value of just over €33.5 million. This funding is supporting companies at all stages of their digital journey, from initial online presence to advanced digitalisation of products and processes. It is also facilitating exporting and the use of digital technologies to create new markets and business models.

The table below is a breakdown of funding by county and shows that companies across the regions in Ireland are taking action to digitalise and are benefitting from funds under the Digital Transition Fund to do so.