Adjournment Motion Speech on the need for additional funding for County and City Enterprise Boards
Thursday 24th June 2010
Senator James Carroll

“Go raibh maith agat a Chathaoirleach chun seans a labhairt faoi an gá le airgead breise a thabhairt go dtí na mBord contae agus cathair fiontar.

An t-Aire, I was elected to Louth County Council last June and I was elected within 2 weeks from the first Council meeting to the Louth County Enterprise Board. This was my priority after getting elected. Trying to get jobs moving is essential not only in my constituency of “Louth/East Meath” but throughout the entire country.

Louth County Enterprise Board is the primary agency in County Louth dedicated to the development of micro-enterprise. The Board has been in existence now for over 15 years and its experienced staff has provided advice, counselling, training, finance and resource development support to well over 4,000 local enterprises.

However, as of recent weeks, they have zero money to assist new and start-up businesses for the rest of 2010. I think for the sake of 60 million or even 30 million nationally among all the boards, we could see new businesses flourish and thrive.

Former head of IDA Ireland, Padraic White is the chairman of the Louth Economic Forum. This transformative group are drawing up a 9 point action plan for making County Louth the number one place to do business. We need to make Ireland Inc the number one place to do business. The Louth Economic Forum nine point strategy is:
1. FDI
2. Sustainable Energy
3. Indigenous Industry
4. Tourism and Heritage
5. Education and Training
6. Agricultural and Fisheries
7. Broadband
8. Making Louth the best County to do business
9. Drogheda-Dundalk-Newry Economic Corridor

We need to be assisting the County Enterprise Board structure to help local authorities like Louth to have the foundation to allow these goals to be achieved. I look forward to the Minister’s reply.”