Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 October 2025
362. Deputy Johnny Mythen asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the supports being put in place to attract new employers to County Wexford and the surrounding region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57201/25]
View answerRegional development is a key element of our national enterprise policy, as set out in the Programme for Government and the White Paper on Enterprise, and is a key focus of the work of my Department and its agencies. In this regard, IDA Ireland has reaffirmed its strong commitment to regional development as a core pillar of its 2025–2029 strategy, 'Adapt Intelligently: A Strategy for Sustainable Growth and Innovation'. This ambitious strategy aims to secure 550 investments outside Dublin, accounting for 55% of all planned investments to 2029. IDA’s strategy focuses on partnering with the existing FDI base to retain and renew their Irish operations alongside an ongoing focus on identifying new opportunities associated with FDI growth drivers including AI & digital, semiconductors, sustainability and health. In practical terms this means supporting clients to increase the competitiveness of their Irish operations through investment in RD&I, digitalisation, talent development and sustainability.
Wexford is part of IDA Ireland's South-East Region which also includes Waterford, Kilkenny, and Carlow. There are 85 IDA client companies in this region, employing 15,580 people, with a further 12,464 people employed indirectly, with 25 of these in Wexford employing 3,606 and 7,232 respectively. Grant support totalling €261,398 was provided to IDA clients in Wexford in 2024.
The FDI performance in the region has been strong over the past five years with employment among IDA clients increasing by 15%. The South-East has a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across Technology, Life Sciences, International Financial Services and Engineering & Industrial Technologies which are complemented by research centres that help win new business and assist existing client companies with transformation. Counties in the South-East also benefit from direct and indirect ‘remote’ and ‘hybrid’ employment generated by IDA client companies located in Dublin.
IDA Ireland continues to deliver a competitive property offering to attract FDI and support the growth and expansion of domestic clients within the Enterprise Ireland portfolio and Local Enterprise Offices (LEO) clients. In that regard, I am advised that in terms of land holdings in County Wexford, the IDA currently owns 58 hectares of lands with approximately 4 hectares available for marketing across Wexford IDA Business & Technology Park, Wexford Business Park, and IDA Enniscorthy. IDA continues to work with regional stakeholders and the private sector on opportunities to add to the supply of competitive property solutions in the South-East Region. Under its current strategy IDA has committed to deliver an Advance Planning Permit in partnership with Wexford County Council for an Advanced Technology Building during the lifetime of the 2025-2029 Strategy.
Innovative, ambitious start-ups are the bedrock of the Irish economy and will form the foundations of future enterprise success. Enterprise Ireland, in partnership with the 31 LEOs and the wider enterprise and innovation ecosystem, aims to stimulate and foster the next generation of Irish enterprise successes by supporting ambitious start-ups to access finance, build capacity, and grow domestically and internationally. Enterprise Ireland is committed to supporting the attraction and development of employers in County Wexford and the wider South-East region through a range of targeted initiatives and national programmes.
In 2024, 5,943 people were employed across 130 Enterprise Ireland client companies in County Wexford, up from 5,776 in 2023, which represents an increase of 167 net jobs. In April 2025, EI client and global leader in the design and manufacture of medical device balloons, Hoop Medical, announced the official opening of its new, purpose-built facility in the Ardcavan Business Park, Wexford. This expansion supported by EI provides a 10,000-square-foot manufacturing space, more than tripling Hoop's current footprint to support the company’s continued growth and create new job opportunities.
Enterprise Ireland has also invested heavily in the B.A.S.S.E. accelerator programme, delivered by GreenTech HQ in Enniscorthy. This supports SMEs with mentoring, strategic planning, and access to entrepreneurial talent to drive sustainable growth, with the objective of creating up to 300 new jobs in scaling EI client companies. More broadly, under its new five-year strategy Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally (2025–2029), Enterprise Ireland aims to support 1,000 new start-ups, 1,700 new exporters, and increase employment in supported companies to 275,000 nationwide.
Enterprise Ireland also provides direct supports to businesses seeking to establish or expand in Wexford, including Employment Funding grants, Market Discovery Funds to explore new markets, and Key Manager grants to attract senior talent. These supports are designed to help companies start, compete, scale, and connect—ensuring that Irish enterprises can thrive locally while growing globally. Enterprise Ireland works closely with regional stakeholders, including Wexford County Council and the Local Enterprise Office, to ensure a coordinated approach to enterprise development and job creation.
Enterprise Ireland is an active member of the South-East Regional Enterprise Plan process which has brought together stakeholders in the South-East to develop initiatives focused on driving enterprise growth in the region and continues to invest in supporting infrastructure, innovation hubs, and collaborative projects that strengthen regional enterprise ecosystems. The South-East REP covers Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny and Carlow and aims to leverage the established strengths of the region in terms of ICT, life sciences, engineering and financial services and build capacity in emerging areas such as offshore energy. Some of the projects supported through the South-East REP include the Ireland South-East Offshore Wind Partnership, and the Business Advantage & Sustainability South-East (B.A.S.S.E) programme.
Based on all of the above, I have every confidence that Wexford and the South-East region will remain an attractive location for both foreign and domestic investment and continue to be a thriving entrepreneurial hotspot well into the future.
