Martin Daly (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail)
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456. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his Department has engaged with the Roscommon Chamber of Commerce following recent reports of economic distress; the supports being considered to revitalise local enterprise; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [61484/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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My Government colleagues and I recognise the challenges faced by local businesses in towns and communities across the country in recent years, due to rising costs and other factors. In the Programme for Government, we have committed to bringing forward measures to support small businesses, acknowledging the increased cost pressures on these sectors.

The Cost of Business Advisory Forum, set up by my Department this year, delivers on a commitment in the Programme for Government 2025 to support small business, enterprise and industry, across various sectors such as hospitality, retail, agrifood, tourism, exports and manufacturing.

It is comprised of SME and Industry representative organisations, Regulatory/State Bodies and Government Departments who will jointly consider issues pertaining to non-payroll costs that can lead to higher costs for businesses at a regional and national level in Ireland.

The final objective of the Forum is to present a report to Government in late Q1 2026, that will outline its findings and highlight those steps that can be taken to mitigate issues arising from increased costs or any associated regulatory or infrastructural issues that merit a changed approach.

Balanced regional development is a Government priority and a central aim of the White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030 is to support balanced regional enterprise development. The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment and its agencies contribute to this agenda in several ways, including through the 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 West REP covers the counties of Galway, Mayo and Roscommon and its Steering Committee includes stakeholders from the Enterprise Agencies, LEOs, Local Authorities, Regional Skills, Higher and Further Education, Fáilte Ireland and companies in the private sector.

The Local Enterprise Offices (LEO) in Roscommon continues to play an extremely important role, as part of a supportive ecosystem, providing their services direct to small businesses and promoting entrepreneurship within towns and communities across the county.

The LEOs provide consultancy and grants to small businesses across all sectors, in the areas of Lean, Green, and Digital. These supports focus on enhancing productivity and improving competitiveness in small businesses, assisting them in saving time, money and energy.

To further ease access to business supports, the National Enterprise Hub (NEH) provides an all-of-government free service, staffed by expertly trained advisors and is focused on helping business owners access a range of government supports.

While I have not met with the Roscommon Chamber of Commerce, the West Steering Group met this week in Athenry, which I attended. I have not yet received an invite to meet with the Roscommon Chamber of Commerce, I would also be happy to meet with them should I receive a meeting request.