297. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the main policy achievements of his Department since 22 January 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50800/26]

Since January 2025, my Department has made significant progress delivering on our Programme for Government priorities and on my ambition to support businesses, especially SMEs, to grow, thrive and deliver high quality jobs across Ireland.

Key policy achievements include:

Enterprise and Economic Growth

• Published the Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity, a whole-of-government strategic response to the economic challenges Ireland is facing.

• Announced the Department’s Sectoral Capital Plan for 2026-2030, investing €4.7 billion in Ireland's enterprise and innovation ecosystem.

• Secured a €1 billion package of enterprise tax relief in Budget 2026, including an increase in the R&D Tax Credit from 30% to 35% and enhancements to Capital Gains Tax Entrepreneur Relief.

• Successfully completed the implementation phase of the White Paper on Enterprise and commenced development of the new Enterprise 2035 strategy.

• IDA Ireland announced a record 323 approved investments in 2025, a 38% increase on 2024. These investments are expected to create over 15,300 additional jobs in the coming years, across the country. 57% of all new investments are going into regional locations.

• Established a Small Business Unit fulfilling a key commitment in the Programme for Government. The Unit and Enterprise Ireland have completed a comprehensive review of application requirements for each LEO grant, resulting in a significant reduction in the number of questions across multiple grant schemes.

• Convened the Cost of Business Advisory Forum and held several thematic meetings. This Forum is focused on reducing the cost of running a business and addressing delays that can impact the operation of business in Ireland.

• Published the https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/publications/powering-prosperity-final-implementation-progress-report.html highlighting significant achievements made in developing a successful offshore wind energy industry in Ireland.

• Secured Government approval for the Industrial Development (Amendment) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2026. The legislation empowers IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland to accelerate investment, employment and regional development.

• Received Government approval for development of Next Generation Sites to ensure we remain competitive in attracting the next wave of large-scale, high-value manufacturing investments.

Employment and Workforce

• Achieved record-breaking employment levels with over 2.83 million people in work by the end of 2025.

• Employment in EI, IDA and LEO supported companies was robust in 2025. Employment in EI supported companies totalled 232,425, an increase of 1.3% over 2024 despite a challenging year for some sectors of exporting Irish businesses. 69% of new jobs were created located outside the Dublin region. The LEO portfolio of over 7,200 small businesses accounts for over 40,000 jobs across the country. In 2025, LEO supported companies created 7,261 new jobs and saw a 12th consecutive year of jobs growth. The 1,884 IDA client companies directly employed 312,468 in Ireland (up 1.5% over 2024).

• Increased the minimum wage to €14.15 per hour effective 1 January 2026, benefiting over 201,000 workers.

• Launched the Employment Permits Online system and implemented the Employment Permits Act 2024, significantly reducing processing times for critical skills and general permits. As a result of a comprehensive review of the Employment Permits System that commenced in Summer 2025, changes were made to the Critical Skills Occupations List and General Employment Permit quotas.

• Completed the first statutory review of the legislation granting employees the right to request remote working and published an updated Code of Practice on Access to Part-Time Working.

• Published Ireland’s Action Plan to Promote Collective Bargaining 2026–2030, a comprehensive strategy designed to reinforce Ireland’s long-standing system of voluntary industrial relations.

• Expanded worker protections with the launch of a new Deemed Insolvent Process to protect employees’ pay-related entitlements if their employer becomes insolvent.

• Announced a new right under the Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Act 2025 allowing employees to work until State Pension age.

Tourism and Trade Promotion

• Published "A New Era for Irish Tourism," a five-year policy prioritising sustainability, digital transformation, and regional development.

• Secured a reduction in the hospitality VAT rate from 13.5% to 9% for food, catering, and hairdressers, effective from 1 July 2026.

• Unveiled a comprehensive tourism marketing plan for 2026 with a target to boost overseas visitor spending to over €10 billion annually by 2031.

• Jointly with An Tánaiste, launched the Government’s Action Plan on Market Diversification, a strategic whole of government initiative designed to bolster Ireland’s economic resilience and expand global trade opportunities for Irish businesses. The first progress report was published in March this year.

• Delivered a new Strategic Air Access Fund to drive tourism growth by partnering with airlines on cooperative marketing for new, high-potential direct routes. China Eastern Airlines recently announced the first direct Shanghai to Dublin service, through the fund Tourism Ireland will maximise the opportunities presented by this new route.

Innovation and Digital Transformation

• Allocated €23 million in additional funding for Ireland’s four European Digital Innovation Hubs to continue working with SMEs, as well as public service bodies, to support their uptake of AI and other cutting edge digital technologies.

• Announced details of an €18 million investment in 40 projects across Ireland under the Smart Regions Enterprise Innovation Scheme, designed to strengthen regional enterprise, drive innovation and support sustainable economic growth.

• Under the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund Call 7 almost €159 million has been awarded to 27 projects that will play a pivotal role in addressing the major challenges facing our society and economy. Call 8 will open later this year.

• Launched Ireland’s National Competence Centre in Semiconductors (I-C3), a significant milestone in Ireland’s commitment to semiconductor innovation and European collaboration under the European Chips Act.

• Announced funding of €5.74 million for seven projects under the 2025 Capital Equipment Call. As a result of this investment, the capabilities of the successful Technology Gateways and Technology Centres will be enhanced, enabling them to deliver cutting-edge solutions to industry and support innovation across key sectors.

• Launched the “AI - Good for Business” initiative, to support Irish businesses adopting artificial intelligence into their day-to-day work.

Regulation and Consumer Protection

• Designated 15 competent authorities under the EU’s AI Act and announced plans to set up a National AI Office to drive the adoption of artificial intelligence while ensuring proportionate regulation and establishing a regulatory sandbox.

• Published the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Bill 2026.

• Regulations signed to give effect to EU Directives on cutting red tape and simplifying the obligations on business in relation to corporate sustainability reporting. These regulations provided much-needed legal certainty to Irish business.

• Worked to improve and strengthen the mandate of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), including the appointment of new members and raising thresholds for mandatory merger notification.

• Established the Employment Law Review Group to ensure our legal framework is fit for purpose and adapts to changes in the evolving contemporary workplace.

The Deputy will appreciate that the above represents a short synopsis of the key achievements of my Department but does not reflect the full breadth of our work over the period requested. Full details of 2025 policy achievements will be published in our Annual Report later this year.