Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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950. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to provide an assessment of his Department’s view of the state of the following sectors in the economy: pharma, technology and med-tech; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43436/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Ireland’s pharmaceutical, technology and medtech sectors – both Irish-owned and part of our FDI community – are world-class in scale and export performance, and deeply embedded in global value chains.

Ireland is regarded as a global player in pharmaceuticals and biotech. According to my Department’s 2024 Annual Business Survey of Economic Impact (ABSEI), this sector employs over 36,000 people and produces approximately €86 billion in annual exports, making it one of Ireland’s largest exporting goods industry fuelled by a large stock of multinational companies. Over recent years Ireland has "moved up the value chain” to advanced therapeutics such as cell and gene therapies, underpinned by strong innovation in biotech, microbiome science and advanced materials.

The technology and ICT, including services, sector is another cornerstone of the Irish economy. The 2024 ABSEI notes it employs over 135,000 people and generates €286.8 billion annually. Ireland serves as the European or EMEA headquarters for numerous tech multinationals, cementing its role as a leading digital gateway to Europe.

Furthermore, Ireland is widely recognised as one of the top five global medtech hubs, home to approximately 450 companies. The 2024 ABSEI notes the sector employs over 41,000 workers with €13.7 billion in exports annually.

The European Union has marked pharmaceuticals, technology and ICT, and medtech as strategic sectors, a prioritisation which aligns closely with Ireland’s ambitions for the sectors, including through Silicon Island: Ireland's National Semiconductor Strategy, and working towards the development of a National Life -Sciences strategy, along with progressing other strategies in the digital and AI areas.

The State supports, through Government agencies, FDI and Irish-owned enterprises through R&D funding, talent and skills development, digital and sustainability supports and infrastructure incentives, and have highlighted the tech and life sciences sectors as key growth engines with decades-long stability. Indeed, the new IDA Strategy has a particular focus on the Digitalisation and AI, Semiconductor, Sustainability and Health sectors, while Enterprise Ireland’s strategy also places particular emphasis on technology and digitalisation, life sciences and medtech.

Despite strong fundamentals, Ireland is exposed to potential US tariffs. The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade has publicly warned against reciprocal tariffs and underscored Ireland’s interlinked trade with the US, noting overall pharma exports worth up to €58 billion annually. Despite these external risks, confidence in all three sectors is high because Ireland’s strengths include:

- Deep multinational FDI base present for over a decade with a resilience of long-term investments anchored in Ireland.

- A high-performing, Irish-owned, globally exporting sector.

- Highly educated workforce with strong STEM credentials and innovation capacity.

- Robust Government policies and strategies and a focus on developing our national infrastructure to provide a supportive environment to enterprise development and investment and the pipeline of talent necessary for business success.

- EU-level backing, via funds, integration frameworks and pan European strategies.

Though trade tensions and potential US tariffs pose risks, the combination of an educated workforce, sustained policy support and strategic EU action fosters confidence that these sectors will continue to drive Ireland’s economic growth.