Tony McCormack (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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58. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures his Department is taking to support the economic rejuvenation of towns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33030/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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The Government is committed to bringing forward measures to support small businesses in every region, county and town in Ireland.

The Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) play an extremely important role at local level, providing their services direct to small businesses and promoting entrepreneurship across the country.

The development and publication of the LEO Policy Statement in 2024 sets the strategic direction of LEO programmes. It emphasises this Government’s intention to engage more with locally trading businesses. LEOs will continue to foster a strong entrepreneurial culture and promote enterprise nationally.

As business units within each of the 31 Local Authorities, LEOs support the development of economic strategies such as the Local Economic and Community Plans and ensure that an enterprise perspective is brought to bear on various Local Authority and regional plans and frameworks.

The LEOs offer a signposting service for all government supports available to small businesses and can provide information/referrals to other relevant bodies e.g. Revenue, Micro Finance Ireland, Fáilte Ireland, LEADER, and Enterprise Ireland.

LEOs provide training and advice on entrepreneurship and helping businesses to start, grow and deal with the challenges of running a business. LEOs support job creation and provide accessible high-quality supports for small businesses.

Balanced regional development is a Government priority and a central component of the White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030. My Department and its agencies contribute to this agenda in several ways, including through nine Regional Enterprise Plans. These are bottom-up plans developed and led by regional stakeholders, which focus on collaborative initiatives to strengthen the enterprise ecosystem in each region.

The REPs aim to bring added value and increased impact through regional actors working collaboratively to address challenges and foster new enterprise development opportunities across Ireland. Each REP comprises several strategic objectives and associated actions which focus on collaborative initiatives to strengthen the enterprise ecosystem in each region; focus areas include decarbonisation, digitalisation and place-making.

In April 2024 Mid-Term Progress Reports were published for the nine REPs and are available on my Department’s website. The recent meeting of the Regional Enterprise Plans National Oversight Group on 25 April 2024 it was agreed that the current REPs would be extended for one year to end 2025.

Aindrias Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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59. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the emergency measures being considered to assist SMEs in the continuing threat of US tariffs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33217/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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My Department has been preparing for tariffs and economic shocks and we are working with our dedicated agency supporting Irish businesses, Enterprise Ireland. Enterprise Ireland have established a bespoke team which is currently engaging with SMEs, supporting businesses around tariffs and mitigation measures, as well as offering advice and support on diversification measures.

Enterprise Ireland stands ready to support Irish exporters through its current range of supports and its focus is on assisting businesses in developing a response to trade tariffs. Through its team in Ireland and across its seven offices in the US, Enterprise Ireland is working with Irish companies and business owners by providing the latest in strategic market intelligence, information and resources through webinars, and guidance on accessing advisory and financial supports.

Enterprise Ireland has published a Trade Disruption Checklist. This is a practical tool for SMEs to assess their exposure to tariffs and prepare mitigation strategies, including mapping trade flows and understanding customs classifications.

Market diversification remains a key priority, as it has been for decades, and which has seen significant success. There are 190 overseas market advisers employed by Government through Enterprise Ireland, with 156 of these being outside of the US.

Enterprise Ireland provide dedicated schemes and grants, including a strategic consultancy grant for expert advice to support SMEs to internationalise. Enterprise Ireland have an existing market discovery fund already open and I will be pro-actively engaging with businesses to make them aware of these supports and ensure they are accessed at scale.

I recognise that this is a dynamic and evolving situation, and it will be closely monitored. A key element of the Government’s response is the forthcoming Action Plan on Market Diversification , currently being developed jointly by my Department and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. This plan will assess the range of supports available to help Irish businesses diversify their market outlets and supply chains.

My Department will continue to work closely with the enterprise agencies to ensure that SMEs as the backbone of our economy have the tools, resources, and strategic support they need to succeed in a challenging and competitive global environment.