€500m Allocated To Accelerate Export-Led Job Growth

Fine Gael have launched its new 'Long Term Economic Plan', which aims to increase the number of jobs in export-orientated companies over the next five years.

Launching the plan, An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, and the Minister for Jobs, Richard Bruton, said Fine Gael would allocate "at least" €500 million from the €4bn Future Jobs Investment Fund to accelerate export led job growth across the country.

An Taoiseach said: "We want 40% of the 200,000 new jobs we are aiming to create over the next five years to be supported by export orientated companies. As a small open economy the only way we can hope to grow jobs and sustain them is by growing our exports. It's that simple.

"To help ensure that those ambitious targets are achieved we will allocate €500m from our €4bn Future Jobs Fund towards developing the capacity of Irish exporters to grow their business, and jobs, in every county around the country.

"This is an integral part of our plan to make sure that every region feels the benefit of the recovery and that all regions have an unemployment rate below 7% by 2020.

"Building on the success of the Government's Regional Action Plan for Jobs, which has funding of €250 million, our new Future Jobs Investment Fund will commit €500 million of extra funding in the years ahead. Our new Future Jobs Investment Fund will deliver:

• An extra €300 million in capital funding to Enterprise Ireland to allow it to provide additional support to Irish owned enterprises focused on exports. This extra funding will give Local Enterprise Offices additional resources to help support startups and small businesses across the country;

• An extra €200 million to the IDA which will allow it, among other things, to attract more multinational jobs by building additional advanced facilities in regional towns. This will follow on from the 11 advanced facilities which are currently being rolled out.

"From 2000-2007 – the so called Celtic Tiger period – just 1% of the new jobs created in the economy were in exports, while another 65% were in construction and the public sector.

"That explains why the jobs crisis hit so hard and so fast when it came in 2008. By contrast, of the 135,000 jobs created since the Action Plan for Jobs was launched over 45% of them are in exporting sectors."

(MH)