Malcolm Byrne (Wicklow-Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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366. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his plans for the State to support companies that are scaling up where they do not qualify for assistance from local enterprise offices nor meet the criteria currently for Enterprise Ireland assistance. [7570/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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I am working with my officials in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment to develop policy actions that will enhance the finance for scaling ecosystem in Ireland and help narrow the gap for funding Scale-ups. Exploring fund structures and other options to develop investment in Irish Scale-ups is included in the new Programme for Government.

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has established an implementation project to develop those high-level recommendations into concrete actions. This work is expected to be complete in Q3 2025.

Alongside this, the Programme for Government contains commitments around improving enterprise competitiveness and productivity, enhancing supports for entrepreneurs and start-up businesses, and assisting Irish companies to scale globally.

To help achieve this Enterprise Ireland will place an increased emphasis on collaborating with the Local Enterprise Offices to ensure that SMEs of all sizes can access supports appropriate to their stage of development.

Finally, I would encourage all business owners to avail of is the National Enterprise Hub (NEH). The NEH is an all-of-government service, staffed by expertly trained advisors and is focused on helping all businesses access a range of government supports. The hub brings together information and resources on over 250 government supports from 29 different Departments and State Agencies. Information and support can be accessed through the website or by speaking to an advisor by phone or via live chat.

Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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367. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if any funding is available for businesses that wish to open a free play area for children in their premises, specifically shopping centres. [7607/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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I encourage any entrepreneur or potential business to contact their Local Enterprise Office (LEO). The LEO plays an extremely important role at local level, as part of a supportive ecosystem, providing their services direct to small businesses, promoting entrepreneurship and contributing to jobs growth within towns and communities across the county. The LEOs provide a signposting service for all government supports available to the SME sector and can provide information/referrals to other relevant bodies under agreed protocols.

LEOs promote entrepreneurship and are the first-stop-shop for anyone who is beginning their journey with a new business as well as those wishing to expand their existing one. LEOs offer a wide range of high-quality business and management development programmes that are tailored to meet specific business requirements. Whether it is a new start up or growing an existing business there are programmes that are suitable for anyone exploring self-employment as an option or for those who are currently operating a business and wish to learn more.

LEOs can offer direct financial grant assistance to small businesses. However, it should be noted that grants that are specifically designed for growth or exporting are aimed at those in the manufacturing and internationally traded services sectors. These cannot be provided to businesses in areas such as personal services, local retail, or local professional services as it may give rise to displacement of businesses in the locality.

LEOs also provide consultancy and funding in the areas of Lean, Green and Digital which are available to a broader range of locally traded businesses. These schemes are focused on providing capital to established businesses to assist in implementation of recommendations to digitalise or decarbonise a business. These schemes will also enhance the productivity and improve the competitiveness of small businesses.

I also encourage any business owners to looking to avail of government support to consult the National Enterprise Hub (NEH). The NEH was launched in July last year, it is an all-of-government free service, staffed by expertly trained advisors and is focused on helping business owners access a range of government supports.

Designed as an entry point to aid business owners find relevant supports and help for their business, the NEH brings together information and resources on over 250 government supports from 29 different departments and state agencies.