Oireachtas Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation
28 January 2014
Opening Statement by Mr John Murphy, Secretary General,
Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation to the Joint Committee
Session 1 - The Action Plan for Jobs
(i)
Update on the implementation of the Action Plan for Jobs 2013 and priorities for
the APJ 2014
I would like to thank the Committee for giving me the opportunity to talk about the Action Plan
for Jobs in general.
Economic Background
We are all aware of the scale of the jobs challenge continuing to face Ireland and the wider
European Union at this time. Behind every job that has been lost there are families and
businesses struggling to cope with the impact of the downturn. It is not what we want for the
economy or for society. That is why, in Ireland, the Government has made put the jobs and
growth strategy centre stage and made job creation our key priority, matching the priorities
agreed in Europe through the Europe 2020 strategy and the various flagships, including the
Industrial Policy flagship.
Overcoming that jobs challenge will be greatly enhanced by improving Ireland, and Europe’s
competitiveness. This will reduce the cost of our enterprises doing business here, and also
make our economies attractive ones for Multi-National Corporations (MNCs) to look to invest
their latest projects in.
In essence, every economy must continue to adapt to be able to compete and win when faced
with the constant flux in global supply and demand. Ensuring that we are competitive will give
us that ability to adapt, and ability to win.
As a tool to give us that adaptability, the Government have put in place the ‘Action Plan for
Jobs’ with a dual mandate of encouraging growth and creating and maintaining jobs in our
economy. The intention is to transform the Irish economy that suffered so badly during the
economic crisis to an economy built on enterprise, exports and innovation.
The Action Plan for Jobs does not purport to be a silver bullet that will change our economic
fortunes overnight. Rather, it is about grinding out transformations in how we support
business, one by one, to make Ireland a better place in which to do business.
Objectives
Since it was introduced in 2012, the Action Plan for Jobs has been one of the Government’s key
instruments to support job creation. The objectives of the Action Plan are to:
 support the creation of 100,000 jobs in the economy by 2016
 have 2.1 million in work by 2020 (revised upwards in the MTES from the original 2 million
figure)
 make Ireland the best small country in which to do business.
It will do this by
-
improving the environment in which businesses operate,
encouraging entrepreneurship,
helping Irish companies to grow and increase their exports, and
continuing to attract investment from abroad.
The Action Plan has put job creation at the centre of policy formulation for all Government
Departments and has changed the way Government operates.
The 2012 Action Plan contained 270 actions for delivery right across Government. Each action
was broken down into quarterly milestones which were reported on in published Progress
Reports at the end of each Quarter. 249 of the 270 actions (92%) were delivered in full in 2012.
Those that were not delivered either carried forward to 2013 or were replaced by other
actions.
The 2013 Action Plan contained 333 actions, including 7 “Disruptive Reforms”, or key initiatives
which were chosen for their potential to make a significant contribution to job creation and/or
economic growth in the medium-term. There has once again been a very high implementation
(c. 90%) of the 2013 Quarterly deliverables in the first three Progress Reports published to date.
The fourth Progress Report for 2013 will be published shortly.
Minister Bruton is currently finalising the 2014 Action Plan for Jobs on behalf of the
Government. This year’s Plan will build on the success of 2012 and 2013 and will once again set
out a series of ambitious commitments on the part of Government to support job creation and
retention. Supporting entrepreneurship and SMEs will be key elements of the 2014 Plan. The
Plan will also contain a number of new initiatives, building on the “Disruptive Reforms”
approach last year.
Forfás involvement in the Action Plan for Jobs
Over the last three years, Forfás has become increasingly involved in the central policy-making
process in the Department, with the Agency playing a leading role in the preparation of the
annual Action Plan for Jobs. Forfás has worked closely with Minister Bruton, officials in my
Department, and with other Departments and agencies in the development of the two Action
Plans for Jobs published to date. They are continuing this role in relation to the preparation of
the 2014 Plan. In addition, under the 2012 and 2013 Action Plans, Forfás undertook significant
sectoral reviews which were brought to Government. For example, Forfás prepared a new
strategy for the manufacturing sector called “Making It in Ireland: Manufacturing 2020”,
together with an analysis and strategic plan for the construction sector entitled “Ireland's
Construction Sector: Outlook and Strategic Plan to 2015”. Forfás also prepared an analysis of
the potential for employment growth in the Social Enterprise sector in Ireland. All 3 reviews
were published in the course of 2013. Many other significant pieces of research were also
carried out by the Agency.
Quarterly Reporting
The system of quarterly progress reports is a key part of the Action Plan for Jobs architecture,
ensuring that Government holds itself to account in public on implementation of measures to
improve competitiveness and support job-creation, thereby maximising delivery rates.
The reports for the first 3 quarters of 2013 showed that, of the 452 measures which were
committed to, 406 (90%) were delivered on schedule, with some of the remainder having been
completed in the interim. This is a very high implementation rate, echoing that achieved in
2012. The Q4 Implementation Report is currently being compiled and I expect that this will be
approved by Government and published in the next few weeks.
Budget 2014
The objective of the Action Plan for Jobs is to support businesses to create jobs and get people
back to work. The Minister for Finance followed the same approach with the recent Budget
2014. Creating jobs is the primary objective and last October Minister Noonan announced that
he is introducing 25 pro-business and pro-jobs measures. The total cost of the tax elements is
in excess of €500 million in a full year. This very significant investment is designed to help
businesses in key sectors achieve their full growth potential and create jobs.
Employment Data
The Action Plan set out a target of having an extra 100,000 people in work by 2016 from a
baseline of 1.85 million in employment in 2012. The original Action Plan also set a target of
having 2 million people at work by 2020. The Government’s Medium Term Economic Strategy,
which was published in December, has set a higher goal for 2020 and now aims to have over 2.1
million people in employment by the end of the decade.
Achieving these targets will be extremely challenging. However, recent data on employment is
encouraging. There were just under 1.9 million people at work in Quarter 3 2013. This
represents an increase of 58,000 people in employment compared to Quarter 3 2012, net of
reductions which are taking place in the public sector (public sector employment fell by nearly
4,000 in the year to Q3 2013).
Employment increases have been realised in agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, ICT and
professional services – all sectors that have been a focus for the Action Plan for Jobs.
Last year, IDA client companies created 7,071 net new jobs, while Enterprise Ireland companies
created 5,442 net new jobs. These jobs directly created with the support of the State’s
enterprise development agencies are supporting in the order of a further 8,500 jobs in the
economy (using a fairly conservative multiplier of 0.7).
The seasonally-adjusted Unemployment Rate has now fallen from a peak of 15.1% in the first
Quarter of 2012, to 12.8% in Quarter 3 2013.
The long-term unemployment rate decreased from 8.9% to 7.6% over the year to Quarter 3
2013. There have now been 6 consecutive Quarters in a row where unemployment has fallen.
It is heartening to see that consumer confidence is now at an all time high compared to 6 years
ago. Property prices are rising in some areas of the country. More tourists are visiting Ireland.
Impact of Action Plan for Jobs
While it is difficult to say with certainty the impact that the Action Plan for Jobs has had on
these improved labour market figures - and there are a range of factors at play in the recovery
of the Irish economy - it is clear that a coherent and consistent public policy approach to
addressing barriers to job creation is important.
Some of the key deliverables on the part of Government which are clear Action Plan initiatives
include:

The establishment of a suite of new financial instruments for SMEs, including the
Microfinance Fund, the Credit Guarantee Scheme and three NPRF funds for SMEs. In total,
various Government sponsored schemes, together with private sector investment, is
making over €2 billion available in non-bank financing to business.

New structures have been put in place in Enterprise Ireland to assist companies seeking to
grow their exports and the number of trade missions has been increased.

A Strategy for the Manufacturing was published in 2013, providing a long term vision for
the manufacturing sector to help realise the Action Plan for Jobs target of 20,000 additional
jobs for the sector.

The JobsPlus initiative was launched in the middle of 2013. This scheme provides a subsidy
to employers who recruit a person who has been on the Live Register for 12 months or
more.

A new Health Innovation Hub was piloted in 2012, and built on in 2013 to establish Ireland
as a leading location for start-up and growing medtech and healthcare companies.

A €35 million Energy Efficiency Fund has been established by the Minister for
Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to support improved energy efficiency in
the public and commercial sectors. This investment will be more than matched by the
private sector. Around 20 exemplar projects have been selected for support through the
fund.

In March 2012, the Government launched the Succeed in Ireland initiative which aims to
create 5,000 jobs within five years by targeting international companies and business
people, who would otherwise not be reached by the State enterprise agencies, to bring
employment opportunities to Ireland.

Supports to microenterprises are being fundamentally re-structured to create new Local
Enterprise Offices which will be first-stop-shops for anyone wishing to set up a new
business or seek business advice.

Upskilling for those who are unemployed is being provided for through courses such as
Springboard and Momentum. The ICT Action Plan is placing a particular emphasis on
addressing the skills gaps in the ICT sector.
Wider impacts
The Action Plan has had wider impacts in terms of Government administration. At an overall
level, the Action Plan for Jobs process has encouraged a whole-of-Government focus on
supporting job creation in the economy. It has resulted in a breaking down of silos across
Departments and produced a more collaborative approach across the public service with the
aim of delivering employment objectives. This is most evident in the Disruptive Reform
projects, which generally require a collaborative approach on the part of a number of
Departments and agencies (e.g. the Health Innovation Hub involves D/JEI, D/Health, Enterprise
Ireland and the HSE in bringing together businesses and clinicians to identify enterprise
solutions to medical issues).
The transparent and rigorous monitoring of commitments on a quarterly basis has also speeded
up getting initiatives across the line. This process is carried out by a Monitoring Committee cochaired by the Secretary General to the Government and the Secretary General at the
Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, and involving DJEI, D/Taoiseach, D/PER and
Forfás. The Tánaiste’s Office is also represented on the Committee.
Industry Partners
The Disruptive Reform projects have also introduced a new approach to the delivery of key
initiatives, with the involvement of Industry Partners. There are six Industry champions helping
to deliver the Disruptive Reforms. Each was selected based on their proven track records in
developing businesses and creating jobs. They have brought their experience and insights to
help provide greater synergy between the public and private sectors in delivering on the key
Disruptive Reform projects.
Action Plan for Jobs 2014
Through the Action Plans for Jobs in 2012 and 2013, the Government has focussed on creating a
supportive environment for businesses operating in Ireland. The Action Plans have included a
range of concrete measures to address issues which impact on our competitiveness position.
The implementation of these actions, combined with the Government’s exit from the Troika
programme and its return to international funding markets, will play a key role in improving our
competitiveness further and realising our ambition of making Ireland the best small country in
which to do business. Ireland is currently rated highly internationally on international
competitiveness rankings, and we have built a strong basis on which to compete on global
markets. Ireland has moved up to 17th place in the IMD’s World Competitiveness Yearbook
2013, having being ranked 24th only 2 years ago. Ireland is ranked 15th in the World Bank’s
Doing Business 2014 report, while Forbes magazine recently named Ireland as the “Best
Country for Business”, up from sixth position in the previous year.
While Ireland’s competitiveness has improved and the numbers in employment have increased,
we must continue to do more to ensure that these competitiveness gains are not eroded as the
economy begins to recover. The Action Plan for Jobs will continue to be the key vehicle for the
identification and delivery of specific policy measures that will bring further improvements to
our competitiveness position and support job creation.
Through the Action Plan for Jobs in 2014, the Government will continue to build on the
progress already achieved, as we continue to transform the economy from one based on
unsustainable debt to one based on enterprise, innovation and exports. The 2014 Action Plan is
currently being finalised and is set to deliver a further suite of actions to support enterprise.
Conclusion
The Action Plan for Jobs process is still relatively new. There have been clear signs of
stabilisation in the labour market, with the sustained increases in overall jobs numbers in the
last twelve months. The extent to which this improvement can be directly attributed to the
Action Plan for Jobs is difficult to assess at this point. Other factors, such as the stabilisation of
the Euro, undoubtedly come into play in terms of supporting business confidence.
However, given the administrative change which has been brought about in setting and
measuring the delivery of quarterly commitments, the enhanced co-operation between
Government Departments and agencies, and the singular focus on the Jobs agenda across
Government, it is fair to say that in tandem with other Government policies, the Action Plan for
Jobs process is making a positive contribution to the enterprise environment.