Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 April 2026
174. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment further to the Programme for Government commitment to establish a Small Business Unit within his Department, and a Cost of Business Advisory Forum, if he will provide an update on the work of both bodies to date; the issues they have examined or progressed; and the way in which small businesses are being engaged in shaping their outputs. [30413/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am pleased to inform that the Small Business Unit was established in my department last year, fulfilling a Programme for Government commitment. The Unit has been tasked with ensuring that the needs and issues of small businesses have a dedicated focus and are recognised and acknowledged across Government. There are a number of tools this Unit and my Department will use to enable its work.
First, through the rigorous implementation of the SME Test. The SME Test tasks policy makers to consider the impact that any new policy, legislation, or regulation, may have on SMEs, and to mitigate against those impacts where appropriate. Secondly, access to grants and support programmes have been simplified through the launch of the National Enterprise Hub (NEH). The NEH is hosted and operated by Enterprise Ireland (EI) and has over 250 different supports for businesses from 32 Departments and agencies. Third, the Small Business Unit has responsibility for the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs). We are ensuring the LEOs are properly resourced to help small businesses. A review of the full suite of LEO supports is currently underway while my Department and EI have completed a review of applications for all LEO grant schemes to reduce the number of questions and simplify requirements.
The Cost of Business Advisory Forum was established in June 2025. The Advisory Forum brings together key representative bodies across enterprise, industry, manufacturing, retail, hospitality and agrifood sectors, alongside senior officials across Government departments, regulators, and State agencies. The Forum has met regularly over the last eight months with each meeting devoted to a distinct thematic area of concern to businesses such as energy and security of supply, insurance costs, planning and infrastructure regulations, water services costs, legal costs, reporting and compliance regulations as well as banking, payments, and financial services.
Representatives across different sectors reiterated the real world impacts of sustained and increasing cost pressures and regulatory demands on day to day operations, investment capacity, and competitiveness, particularly for smaller enterprises. At its most recent meeting (22 April), Forum members discussed the draft final report and its recommendations, members stressed the importance of presenting a report that will articulate both immediate practical actions and longer-term policy considerations, which are measurable and impactful in reducing operational costs and regulatory burden on SME’s.
I attended the last meeting of the Advisory Forum alongside Minister Dillon and Minister Smyth, and noted the significant work completed by the Forum and reaffirmed their commitment to bringing this report to Government and giving full consideration to the Forum’s findings. The final report, informed by extensive stakeholder input and cross government collaboration is expected to be presented to Government before the summer recess and it will play a key role in shaping future approaches to supporting a competitive, resilient, and sustainable enterprise environment.
I would like to assure the Deputy that the Government and my Department have been and are still committed to backing businesses and will ensure the actions aimed at supporting small businesses in the Programme for Government are implemented in an effective and timely manner.
