Peter Burke

I thank Deputy Connolly for her question. The Department of Foreign Affairs and my Department established a dedicated business and human rights stakeholder forum with the participation of individuals with relevant expertise and responsibilities from key organisations across business, civil society, trade unions and academia to assist with the development of a second national action plan on busines…

I thank Deputy Connolly for her intervention. A lot of the new EU instruments that are coming into context, and which this plan will have to respond to, are very technical in nature and we are trying to work these and bring them into the action plan. A significant number of the actions contained in this plan are under the purview of other Departments so obviously we are trying to work and liaise w…

It is this Government that brought forward the idea in the programme for Government to deliver on this because we take our human rights obligations very seriously. One can see that from all our actions in multilateral forums, particularly the UN. I met Volker Türk, the head of UN human rights, on many occasions in my last brief. We take very seriously our obligations. With regard to the report, s…

I will endeavour to come back to the Deputy with a timeline as soon as I can get a clear line of sight across government as to when we can deliver it. I do not want to come forward with a plan that I cannot deliver, or which does not have actionable points or delivery dates on it. That is the most important point that I want to have as a stamp of my Ministry.

I thank Deputy Scanlon for his kind wishes on behalf of myself and my Ministers of State, Deputies Smyth and Dillon. The number of jobs in Enterprise Ireland-supported companies in County Leitrim has increased by 67% since 2020, with 978 people now employed in the county by these companies. In 2024 there were 110 new jobs created in the county by Enterprise Ireland-supported clients, helping the c…

I thank the Deputy for his question and for his advocacy on behalf of his constituency. Enterprise Ireland has established the advanced manufacturing unit in Sligo, which is very important. It is an innovation that is a key support to industry working in partnership. It is a huge advantage in terms of doing things that in many instances industry cannot. On Enterprise Ireland and its wider strateg…

I would be happy to. We see four growth areas at this time. First is digital. We are trying, in line with the White Paper on enterprise, to get to 90% digital intensity by 2030. In healthcare, cell and gene therapy is a huge growth area, as well as other healthcare mechanisms. We hope to bring AI into that sphere, which will be key. In sustainability, we have had about 93 investments through IDA i…

I thank the Deputy for his warm remarks and his important question on Cork County Council. The ongoing replenishment of stock is essential to ensuring the portfolio remains fit-for-purpose and meets the evolving needs of the FDI, Enterprise Ireland and LEO client base. A ready supply of appropriately zoned land for development is required for IDA to fulfil its remit and continued success in attrac…

The Deputy raises a valid point and that is why we are launching in the coming weeks Enterprise Ireland's new strategy for the next five years. We need a stronger relationship with Enterprise Ireland and the IDA to make sites available to smaller indigenous enterprises which have grown significantly in recent years. I have raised this with the Department and my fellow Ministers. It is an area we w…

I would be happy to facilitate a meeting with Deputy Moynihan and to work on the land banks that need to be made available through Údarás na Gaeltachta or Enterprise Ireland for smaller agencies. It is something we need to improve upon. I would be happy to work with the Deputy in that regard. I do not have specific figures on the work carried out with Údarás but I will come back to the Deputy. I …

I thank the Deputy. I propose to take Questions Nos. 15 , 19 and 20 together. In total, the increased cost of business and power up grant schemes paid out a very significant sum, totalling more than €400 million, to support SMEs throughout the country. This total of €400 million included €154 million in the first phase of ICOB, €90 million in the second phase of ICOB and €158 million through the …

It is obviously critical that businesses get the support that they need and qualify for. We are working with the Department of public expenditure and reform on rectifying the issue relating to the misclassification. It is critical to demonstrate how much this Government is supporting our SME sector. The forthcoming programme for Government outlines changes we will be implementing in VAT and PRSI t…

We are working on the reclassification issue.

As Minister with responsibility for enterprise, tourism and employment, I am acutely aware that the period since Storm Éowyn hit on Friday 24 January has been a hugely disruptive and worrying time for householders but also for business owners, who have been extremely concerned about the impacts on their businesses, their livelihoods, their customers, their staff and their communities. I recognise …