Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, I am delighted to be here in Glasnevin with you this afternoon to welcome the launch today, in Sligo, by my colleague in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, An Tánaiste, of Enterprise Ireland’s three year Regional Development Strategy.

The strategy is aimed at achieving a better balance of enterprise development across the country and adopts a new approach which Enterprise Ireland intends to take over the next three years in driving growth in indigenous industry.

Enterprise Ireland’s strategy is built upon the strength of the organisation in stimulating business development and in responding to the identified needs of Irish companies and communities across all areas of the country. The new Strategy is built on a four pillar approach which is focussed on:

• Developing the competitiveness and export potential of existing businesses throughout the country.
• Enhancing the operating environment for business, particularly in facilitating companies to develop/access new technologies, and by working with other key players to address the telecommunications and other infrastructural needs of companies throughout the country.
• Supporting an increased level of new high potential start ups throughout the country.
• Facilitating the expansion of East Coast companies to regional locations.

The unprecedented economic growth over the past decade has resulted in 500,000 more people at work than there were at the beginning of the nineties. The majority of these jobs were created in the Greater Dublin Area, and due to this extraordinary growth the infrastructure in the Dublin Region needs significant investment. A comprehensive programme is now in place to improve the housing situation and transport infrastructure during the lifetime of the National Development Plan 2000-2006.

This will include bringing on-stream new Dublin transport services such as the Luas light rail system and a new metro system as well as substantial upgrades for Dublin Bus and the Dart Service. In addition, the serviced land initiative has been put in place to increase the available land for housing development. I am also pleased to say that the M50 motorway ring around Dublin is nearing completion.

Enterprise Ireland’s Strategy in the Dublin Region will be specifically targeted at:-

1. Energizing Exports a major focus for me as Minister with direct responsibility for International Trade;
2. Increasing the focus on Innovation and Research and Development;
3. Maximising the number of high potential start-ups especially in the emerging technologies such as bio-technology, e-Commerce and Software Development; and
4. Capturing spin-offs from the Dublin Digital Media District.

Indigenous Irish industry has performed exceptionally well in recent years and exports of Irish Goods and services continue to grow. I believe the clustering of International Traded Services Companies in Dublin offers an opportunity to build on this export base. Most of these hi-technology companies are already competing on a global scale but this needs to be consolidated and built upon. Enterprise Ireland will use its resources and its overseas office networks to build scale in these new companies and consequently increase sales, exports and employment in the Dublin Region.

Given the scale of the Third Level Sector in Dublin it is important that strategic links between this sector and Industry is actively fostered through programmes such as the Campus Company Programme and the Programme in Advanced Technology. The commercialisation of research undertaken in college campuses is key to Industry in Dublin keeping abreast of developments. The emergence of new companies in emerging sectors is the key to the ongoing rejuvenation of Industry. The challenge for Dublin is to provide the necessary infrastructure such as telecommunications with adequate bandwidth, power and heat at competitive prices and the availability of modern user-friendly workspace in key locations.

The bulk of start-ups in the past year has taken place in the Dublin area and is mostly concentrated in the International Traded Sector. This is due in no small way to existence of:

• Highly skilled people;
• Large number of graduates in modern technologies;
• Critical mass of over one million people; and
• A favourable economic environment from a financial and taxation point of view.

It is vital that this stream of high potential companies continues and increases if we are to create the high skill, high value added economy which Dublin deserves. At the same time, however, Enterprise Ireland will pursue the potential for mobility among Irish enterprises wishing to expand by taking a pro-active approach, including a concerted marketing effort, to match expanding companies with regional options. The aim is to secure 30 such expansions outside of Dublin over the next three years.

I believe Enterprise Ireland’s four pillar approach for Regional Growth will facilitate the achievement of this goal and I am delighted - both as Minister for Labour, Trade and Consumer Affairs and as a Dublin TD - to have been able to join you here this afternoon to welcome the launch EI’s Regional Strategy.