John Clendennen (Offaly, Fine Gael)
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297. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of IDA site visits to County Offaly made in the past 18 months; the specific locations of these visits; the results to date of any such visits, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6197/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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IDA site visit data is available on a county basis, and I am advised that over the past 18 months IDA Ireland facilitated 5 site visits to County Offaly. IDA site visits are only one measure of a company’s interest in a particular location and may not necessarily be a true measure of the overall level of foreign direct investment (FDI) activity in a region or county. For example, 70% of FDI won by IDA Ireland in 2024 came from its existing client base, rather than new companies. Also, potential clients visiting Ireland may visit more than one county and may return to a location more than once. The figures given, therefore, represent individual visits and are not indicative of the number of companies that have visited.

It should also be noted that the final decision on where to locate an investment is always decided by the each company itself, and not by IDA Ireland, and it can take many years to convert from an initial site visit to final project proposal. Regular engagement and collaboration with stakeholders are important in positioning any regional location to attract FDI and, in this respect, IDA Ireland continues to engage with stakeholders, as well as working with existing clients, in all regional locations to generate additional employment.

The competition for FDI in the IDA's "key sectors", continues to intensify as countries increase their focus on self-sufficiency and economic security. However, Ireland’s value proposition for inward investment remains strong, based on offering a safe and stable investment location with access to the EU market, an educated and skilled workforce, an attractive environment where people want to live and work, a competitive, consistent and transparent corporate tax regime and an excellent return on investment.

As requested, the number of IDA facilitated site visits to Offaly during 2023 and 2024 is set out in tabular form below. Data shown is for the full year for 2023 and 2024, however there were no site visits to Offaly in the second half of 2023.