Enterprise Support Services
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-13
============================================================

Peter Burke (FG), Longford-Westmeath

We are doing a number of things that will continue to bring viability into businesses. Each of them, on its own, has been opposed by Sinn Féin.
First, we have reassessed the trajectory to a living wage, which has been pointed out by firms as a huge cost for viability. Second, we have put a halt to an extension of sick day numbers. Third, we have increased viability through a host of sustainability grants. Our energy efficiency grant, which is a 75% rebate, can take €1,200 per month off the utility costs of firms. We have established a small business unit within the Department to respond to pressures on the SMEs.
All 13 sectors of the economy are growing. That is what the CSO said in its report in December. It showed that wages are at €1,000 gross per week, which is a 45% increase since 2015. All sectors are growing. Jobs are being created. Every day over 60 jobs are being created in this economy and we are working to reduce costs further through our Cost of Business Advisory Forum.

---

Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-13/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:30+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-13