Alan Dillon

We are very much committed to a whole-of-government approach not only to public health but also to economic sustainability. The national alcohol labelling regulation, while rooted in public health objectives, must be implemented in a way that does not jeopardise Ireland's export-led recovery. Indeed, the alcohol beverage manufacturing sector employs more than 5,500 people and is a strategic contri…

My Department is committed to delivering an efficient and responsive employment permit system which supports businesses and ensures that we are well positioned to maximise the benefits of economic migration. The system is designed to facilitate the entry of appropriately skilled non-EEA nationals to fill skills and-or labour shortages required to develop and support enterprise for the benefit of o…

We recognise the pressures faced by many in the licensed haulage sector. I assure the Deputy that the Government is responding to those concerns. We have made significant progress with the new online employment permit system. It is delivering an effective and responsive system to provide the maximum benefits of our economic migration system. Over the past three years, we have increased staff resou…

These are accurate figures presented by the Department.

I am not aware of the cases the Deputy raised.

If he wants to send me a note in relation to them, I will be happy to take the matter up. As stated, there is a more modern and integrated system now. We are working with the Department of Justice to try to streamline matters more. There is also a single application process for visas. We have made significant progress in relation to labour shortages in many sectors. The Minister and I have made ad…

The programme for Government outlines our commitment to addressing skills shortages and supporting economic growth through a strategic migration approach. Ireland’s general policy is to promote the sourcing of labour from within Ireland and the EEA. To fulfil this policy, Ireland operates and manages an employment permits system designed to fill critical skills and labour shortages in the short to…

The employment permit system is demand-led and designed to respond to the real labour market needs. The occupations list is reviewed periodically. The next formal review is scheduled for the summer. It will be open to all sectors. We invite many representative bodies, Departments and NGOs to make submissions. It is evidence-based. It is reviewed and overseen by an interdepartmental group on econom…

I thank the Deputy for his focus on this important area. The consultation will open shortly. We will make that announcement in due course. It will open for an eight-week period. There will be an opportunity for employers, representative bodies and Departments to make submissions. This is very much a transparent, data-driven process. It is open to all sectors. Most recently, we opened the eligible …

I thank the Deputy for his question. Balanced regional development remains a key Government priority. One central aim of the White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030 is to support balanced regional economic development. My Department and its agencies contribute to this agenda in several ways, including through the nine regional enterprise plans or REPs. These are bottom-up plans developed and led by re…

I agree with the points and the principles the Deputy has presented. The regional enterprise plan for the west is very much a collaborative initiative and must be focused on digitalisation and decarbonisation and on ensuring that the region itself is put to the fore. We have a good story to tell about sectoral growth in ICT, agritech and medtech. It is great to hear about the large multimillion eu…

-----a core element of that will be how we use digital technology to support the plans in the future.

The fact that the tourism function has moved into the enterprise Department means there is a role to expand within the agrifood and tech sector. In my county, agritech is an important sector. We have McHale Farm Machinery and Malone Farm Machinery. The west must be a focal point and have centres of excellence. It is great to hear about such positive developments such as CREW and the other sectors…

I move: "That the Bill now be read a Second Time" I am delighted to bring the Copyright and Related Rights (Amendment) Bill 2025 before the House. It is vital that we have an effective legal framework in place to support copyright and intellectual property. It is a necessity for the economic health of the creative sector, which is a significant employer in the State. This short Bill introduces a…

I thank all Deputies for their engagement and comments on Second Stage of this Bill. I am delighted to see the aims of the Bill are not opposed and are supported. I reiterate what I said earlier about the importance of this Bill to ensure Ireland is fully compliant with EU and international law. The Bill sets out a new framework and process for the agreement of the division of royalties between mu…

I move: That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment pursuant to Standing Orders 103 and 188.

I thank Deputy Healy-Rae for raising this important issue. Last year, the Government introduced two business support schemes that were designed by my Department and administered by the local authorities. The increased cost of business, ICOB, scheme was launched in March of 2024 and was delivered in two phases. The first phase was a broad scheme that distributed over €154 million to 75,000 SMEs in …

I again thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. As outlined, my Department is actively working with local authorities and the LGMA to finalise the details of the appeals process. This process will allow businesses that were misclassified to have their cases reviewed and, where appropriate, be given access to the supports. This is a priority for the Department. We want to ensure that we …

I thank the Deputy for his question. I welcome the publication of Ireland's first national climate change risk assessment. We can already see the effects of climate change through the impact of storms including Babet, Darragh and, most recently, Éowyn. Attribution studies inform us that climate change is adding significantly to the strength of these extreme weather events. Adapting to the new real…

Again, I thank the Deputy for his question on concerns that have been raised in relation to the publication of the risk assessment, which is both comprehensive and evidence based framework that identifies, ranks and prioritises the climate risks, as the Deputy has outlined. What is essential here is that it draws on international best practices from the UK, New Zealand and the EU. It highlights th…

I thank the Deputy for his question and I can certainly respond later in relation to that. The focus now is on delivering the 15 sectoral adaptation plans. That is really important. As I said earlier, we need to take significant steps to future proof Ireland's key infrastructure around electricity and gas. We will put these plans out for consultation. That is really important. What we want to do i…

I thank the Deputy for the question and welcome the opportunity to provide an update on the Government's progress on delivering on our biomethane ambitions. The Government has committed to supporting the production of up to 5.7 TW of indigenous produced biomethane by 2030, a key pillar of our national and EU climate and energy targets. A critical first step on this journey was the publication of t…

I am conscious that the Deputy is raising a question around the streamlining of the planning process. Certainly, I fully recognise the need for correct planning guidelines. Anaerobic digesters themselves are significant infrastructure projects so we need to ensure that these developments are sustainable, sensitive to local communities and are aligned with land use and ecology considerations. We wa…

The biomethane sustainability charter is the priority deliverable. It will chart the Government's commitment around many of the actions to which the Deputy has referred here in relation to ensuring that biomethane production in Ireland is environmentally sustainable. The charter will undergo extensive consultation with key stakeholders and will inform the guidance of the biomethane implementation…

In 2022, the most recent year for which EPA statistics are available, Ireland recycled 32% of plastic packaging waste. This exceeds the current target of 22.5% but meeting the stricter targets of 50% and 55% for 2025 and 2026, respectively, will be more challenging. These figures are in respect of all plastics, including PET. The EU list of plastic waste codes does not isolate individual polymers.…