This document discusses several components that are critical for Ireland to regain its competitiveness. It outlines government influence on competitiveness through taxes, grants, subsidies and infrastructure investment. It also discusses improving access to finance for businesses through methods like bank lending, credit guarantee schemes, microfinance and equity finance. Additionally, it examines enhancing Ireland's skill base through further education and training programs as well as apprenticeships. Finally, it analyzes cost competitiveness factors like the cost of property, energy, and technology that impact business costs.

1. Padraic Mackin, Mark Matthews, Shane Bolton, Daniel Hoey & Bill
Kenwright
Key elements if
Ireland is to regain
its competitiveness

2. 1
Introduction
Thisreportstatesthe variouscomponentswhichare critical if Irelandwishestoregainits
competitivenessinthe future.A lotof workhas alreadybeendone toachieve thistargetsuchasthe
introductionof newfinance schemes andworkbythe IDA Ireland, butmore needstobe done.In
thisreportwe lookat some of the possible actionsthatcanbe taken.

3. 2
Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................1
Government influence on Ireland’s competitiveness.......................................................................3
Taxes.......................................................................................................................................3
Grants......................................................................................................................................3
Labour......................................................................................................................................3
Subsidies..................................................................................................................................4
Infrastructure........................................................................................................................... 4
ImprovingAccess to Finance .........................................................................................................5
Bank Lending............................................................................................................................ 5
Credit Guarantee Scheme..........................................................................................................5
Microfinance............................................................................................................................ 6
Equity Finance.......................................................................................................................... 6
Crowdfunding........................................................................................................................... 6
Enhancing Skill Base...................................................................................................................... 7
Further Education and Training..................................................................................................7
Labour Market Activation, Coordination and Evaluation.............................................................. 7
Apprenticeships........................................................................................................................ 8
Cost competiveness...................................................................................................................... 9
Cost of Property........................................................................................................................ 9
Energy......................................................................................................................................9
Technology............................................................................................................................. 10
IDA Ireland and their role in helping Ireland regainits competitiveness ......................................... 11
References................................................................................................................................. 13

4. 3
Government influence on Ireland’s competitiveness
The governmenthelpsIrelandinmanywaystoremaincompetitiveagainstothercountries.It
influences the country’s economy byprovidinginvestmentinto various projectsandplanstosecure
stability.The governmentfundsandaidsthese projectsbyraisingcapital via taxes, givingoutgrants,
subsidiesand providinginvestmentwhere necessary.The mainattractionforlarge companiesto
investinIrelandisthe lowcorporationtax.
Taxes
Irelandhasone of the lowestcorporationtaxes inthe world.Corporationtax isthe tax paid onthe
profitsearnedbycompaniesandco-operatives.The rate of corporationtax in Irelandis12.5 %.This
isverylowby international standardsbutisconsiderednecessarybythe governmenttostayin
competitionwithotherinternationalcountries.Byhavingthistax solow, multinationalcompanies
will be attractedto setup inIreland.The UnitedArabEmiratescorporationtax is55% (KPMG,2014)
whichmakesIrelandseemmore likelytoattract more companies.Thisnotonlyattractsmore
businesstoIrelandbutbooststhe state’sfinances.Income tax onthe employees’wagesandvalue
addedtax (VAT) ongoodshelpsboostthe government’srevenuealsotoallow themtoinvestmore
inthe likesof infrastructure andgrants.
Grants
A grant isfree moneyprovidedtoabusinessora personbythe government.A grantcan onlybe
givenfora specificreason.There isnointerestorcash repaymentsinvolved.Entrepreneursstarting
up a newbusinessusuallyreceive agrantfromthe governmentbecauseof the benefitsthe new
businesswillprovidetothe economy.A new businesswillprovidemore jobs.Those new employees
will paytaxeswhichbenefitsgovernmentrevenue.The new businesswill be benefitingother
businessesbypurchasingsupplies,givingthe economyanevenbiggerboost.Grantscanbe givento
studentsaswell toincrease theirskills.These grantscan alsobe providedforresearchand
development(R&D). Countyenterpriseboardsspecialiseinassistingsmall local enterprisesand
enterprise Irelandprovidesgrantstoassistthe expansionof Irishownedfirms.(Connolly,2008)
Labour
The governmenttriestoimprove the educationof the Irishpopulationbyprovidinggrantstogo to
college.Goingto college will enhance andimprove the skillsof Irishpeople toprovideahighlyskilled
workforce for newbusinesses.One of the primary waystokeepIrelandcompetitive isbyour
educatedworkforce. 200,000 people will enrol inthe Departmentof EducationandSkillsfundedby
the governmentforEducationandTrainingthisyear.A total of €826 millionwillbe spentbythe
DepartmenttosupportFurtherEducationand Training,€640 millionwill be fundedthroughSOLAS.
Thisis the newfurthereducationand trainingauthorityinIreland.The balance relatestothe teacher
pay elementof the PostLeavingCertprogramme.WhencomparedtoMexico’sworkforce whoare
verylowskilled,Irelandstandoutfornew businesses.The governmentmonitorsandmakessure the
grant givenisspentonthe purpose whichit is given.The employedlabourworkforce wageswhere
increasedlastyeardue to improvedlevelsof productivity.AsshowninIreland’sCompetitiveness
Scorecard2014 Irishlabourcostsincreasedin2012 and 2014. (Central StatisticsOffice,2014)

5. 4
Subsidies
Subsidiesare tariffspaidbygovernmentstohelpfirmscovertheiroperatingcostsandkeeptheir
pricescompetitive.Theyusuallytake the formof grantsor a sortof low interestloan.Forexample,
the EuropeanUnionhas givensubsidiestohelpAirbuscompete internationally onprice againstrival
UnitedStatesfirmssuchas Boeing (EuropeanCommission,2010). State agenciessuchasEnterprise
Irelandgive grantstohelpthe Irishstate subsidise the international marketingeffortsof Irishfirms.
Infrastructure
Infrastructure referstothe basicnetworksupportneededforeconomicactivitysuchasrail,road,
watersystems,airlinks,waste disposal andsea.The governmentusesitsinfrastructure tocompete
withotherforeigncountries.Businessesare alwayslookingforthe easiest,cheapestandbestsortof
transportthere is.The mainmotorwayinIrelandisthe M1.This motorwaystartsfrom Dublinand
goesrightthroughto Belfast.Italsoconnectsto otherroads headingindifferentdirectionsaround
Ireland. The governmentletoutaplanin 2014 to spend€332.9 milliononaninvestment
programme forthe improvementof regional andlocal roads. Irelandalsohasmanyairportsand
Portssuch as DublinAirportandPort.These twowaysof travel are good for businessesbecauseit
makesiteasyfor themto importand exportitems.The Portof Galwayhas recentlysubmitteda
€126 millionplantobuildanewdeepwaterportand reclaimlandfromGalwayBay underthe
StrategicInfrastructure Act.(Ireland,Engineers,2014)

6. 5
Improving Access to Finance
If Irelandisto regainitscompetitivenessinthe future there hastobe a strong flow of finance inthe
countryto allowbusinessestoexpandandgrow.Due tothe economic recessionthathastakenplace
inour economywithinthe lastnumberof years,accessto finance forsmall andmediumenterprises
(SME’s) inparticular, ishard to come by.These companieshave adisproportionate dependence on
the bankingindustryfortheirfundingneeds.
“On the31st December 2012, 94% of totalSME financeforboth Irish and Northern Irish
SME’scame frombankfunding.” (InterTradeIreland,2013)
We will nowlookatvariouswaysthat small andmediumenterpriseswillbe able togainfinance,
fromtraditional sourcesof finance likebanklendingtomore recentsuchas crowd funding.
Bank Lending
Bank loansare the single biggestsource of finance forSME’sinIreland.Theyare vital to the survival
and growthof many organisationsinthe country.Banklendinghasdeclinedsignificantlypost-
recessionhowever,due tobankssuchas AlliedIrishBankandBankof Irelandreturningto
profitabilityin2014 itis hopedthatthiswill leadtoincreasedlendingin2015 and the yearsbeyond.
From the years2011-2013 both of these bankshadset lendingtargetssetoutbythe government
underthe 2011 recapitalisationprogram, these targetswere critical toensure continuedfinance to
SME’s throughoutthese years.
On the 31st
October2014 the StrategicBankingCorporationof Ireland(SBCI) waslaunched. A
strategicsmall andmediumenterprise financingcompany,the SBCI’s mainaimisto ensure the
continuedflowof flexiblefundingfor SMEs.Thisnew companywill provide up to€800 millionof
fundsforSME’s. These will be distributedthroughthe currentretail banksinIrelandandalsonew
entrantsto the lendingmarket.This€800 millionwillbe providedbythe EuropeanInvestmentBank
(EIB), KfWwhichisa Germanpromotional bank andthe IrelandStrategicInvestmentFund(ISIF).
Credit Guarantee Scheme
The CreditGuarantee Scheme commencedinOctober2012 to assistin the deliveryof furtherbank
lendingtosuitable SMEsbyofferinga75% state guarantee tolendersagainst shortfallsonqualifying
loans.Over150 businesseshave sofarusedthe scheme withloansof over€20 millionbackedbythe
state.In February2015 the maximumlengthof the guarantee wasextendedto sevenyears.
In orderto qualifyforthe creditguarantee scheme,the followingapplies:
 SME businesses based in Ireland or areIrish owned
 SME businesses thathave less than 250 employees
 SME businesses thathave a turnover of less than or equal to €50 million,or
 SME businesses thathave an annual balance sheetless than or equal to €43 million
(UlsterBank,2013)

7. 6
Microfinance
Microfinance Ireland(MFI), wasestablishedasasubsidiaryof the Social Finance Foundationto
deliverthe microenterpriseloanfundsetupbythe government.The fundprovidesforunsecured
loansfrom€2,000 up to €25,000 fora termof 3 to 5 years. The microfinance loanfundisonly
obtainable tobusinesseswhowere deniedaloanrequestbythe banks.Thisloanfundwill have a
greaterattitude toriskthan traditional bankscouldpossiblyaffordandhence willbe able tofund
and aidin the establishment andsustainabilityof additional micro-enterpriseswhichare unable to
meetstandardbank criteria. (MicroFinance Ireland,2015)
Equity Finance
Afterbanklending,equityfinance isthe mostsubstantial source of fundingforSME’s.Thissource of
finance,“includinggovernment-backedequityfinance,accountedforapproximately5.6% of total
SME fundingat31st December2012”. (DKMeconomicconsultants,2013)
Thisworksby the ownersof the company sellingacertainpercentof the companyin returnfor cash.
Thisis a great methodof raisingfinance howeverthe existingowner’sdividendpaymentswill reduce
while there votingpoweratthe annual general meetingwillalsoreduce.
Crowdfunding
Crowdfundingis the practice of solicitingsmall amounts of money fromalarge bulk of people in
orderto provide the finance toputnewbusinessideasintopractice ortoexpandan
existingbusinessproject.While thisideahasbeenaroundforgenerations,itisonlywithinthe last
few yearsthat ithas reallytakenoff,due toonline platforms,suchas www.fundit.ie and
www.linkedfinance.com. Crowdfundingoffers bothsole-tradersandbusinessesachance to raise
vital funds,byshowcasingtheirbusinessesandideas andallowingpeoplefromanywhereinthe
worldto investmoney,inreturnforarewardor interestoveracertainperiodof time.
There are numerouswaysabusinesscangainaccess to finance andthe above isjusta small
proportionof those ways.Othersourcesof finance include:
 Enterprise Ireland
 National PensionReserve Fund(NPRV) InnovationFund
 BusinessAngel Partnerships
 Countyand CityEnterprise Boards
 Venture Capital

8. 7
Enhancing Skill Base
EnhancingIreland’sskillbase needstobe a keyaspectif Irelandisto regainitscompetitivenessin
the future.Althoughtraditionallyimprovingcompetitivenessisthoughtof intermsof cuttingcosts,
anotherwayto be competitive istoprovide ahighlyskilledworkforce.Thisskilledworkforce can
attract an array of industriestoIrelandwhichneedthese educatedemployees.Irelandhasalready
investedheavilyinbroadeningitsskill base andthishasresultedinthe countryimprovingits
competitivenessoverthe lastnumberof years.InMay 2014 Irelandmovedupnine placesfrom
previousyearsto15th
inthe IMD WorldCompetitivenessYearbookandrankedfirstinthe worldfor
the availabilityof skilledlabour. (Ireland, IDA,2014)
AlthoughIrelandhashighlyskilledworkforce already,there ismore tobe done.Inlate 2014, the
national competitivenesscouncil laidoutitsplantoenhance the skillsbase withinIreland.Thisplan
includesengagingwithemployersand educationproviderstomatchskillsprovidedwithskills
demanded.The mainaimsof the planare as follows;
 FurtherEducationand Training
 Labour Market Activation,CoordinationandEvaluation
 Apprenticeships
Further Education and Training
The furthereducationandtrainingsectorisone of foursectorsin the Irisheducational framework
that includesprimary,secondaryandhighereducation.Inexcessof 200,000 people enrol in
Departmentof EducationandSkillsfundedfurthereducationtrainingprogrammeseachyear,
costingapproximately€826 million.Withsomuchinvestment,itisimportantthatthe fundsare
beingusedwisely.SoSolasandthe EducationTrainingBoardsare collaboratingwithemployersto
ensure thatfurthereducationandtrainingprogrammesare more flexible andresponsivetomeet
the needsof jobseekersandindustry.
There isstrong focuson employerengagementwhenitcomestofurthereducationandtraining.
Employerinputisessential toensure fundsare directedintoareasof where skill shortagesoccurand
where future demandisforecast.Thisinputisalsonecessarytoformulate curriculainfurther
educationsograduateswill possessaskill setasclose to whata potential employerrequiresas
possible.
There shouldbe greaterparticipation of activationandtrainingprogrammesthatare linkeddirectly
to employer’s needs. Toensure thatthe skillsthatemployersare seekingare provided,itisessential
that the current trainingproviders are developedtoenableemployerparticipation inthe
identificationof the requiredskills,the developmentof relevantcurricula,selectionof candidates
and the provisionof sufficientinternshipandtraineeshipopportunitiesasappropriate. (The Irish
National Organisationof the Unemployed,2009)
Labour Market Activation, Coordination and Evaluation
Labour marketactivation,coordinationandevaluationisthe processof retrainingandreintroducing
the unemployedbackintothe workplace.The recent global economiccrisishasleftmanypeopleun-
employedandwithalackof relevantskills.Andinmanycasespeople have beenunemployedlong-
term,whichcan be demoralisingandcanleadto dependence uponsocial welfare.Thisisthe case
withmanypeople withinthe constructionindustryatpresent.The governmenthasalreadysetupa
numberof programmesto developnewskillsamongstthe unemployed.These programmesinclude
Momentum,Skillnets’ Job-seekersSupportProgramme,JobbridgeandSpringboard.

9. 8
Movingforwardto the future unemploymentcanbe reduced byretrainingandup-skillingthose
receivingsocial welfare.Withaparticularfocuson refiningthe currentprogrammesprovided,so
theybecome betteratdeliveringpositiveresults. The National CompetitivenessCouncilhaslaidout
itsrecommendationon labourmarketactivation inits2014 report;it concludesthatall labour
marketprogrammes needtobe assessedregularlyandrefined,withfundingbeingdirectedtowards
programmeswhichdeliverintermsof targetsandgoals.It is alsoproposedthatdata be collected
fromparticipantswhocomplete the training (e.g.progressionrates,firstjobslocations,etc.) andthe
information utilisedtoshape future courses anddistributedtolearnersandemployerstopromote
engagement. (NationalCompetitivenessCouncil,2014)
Apprenticeships
Apprenticeshipsare becominglesscommoninIreland.Businessesseemtobe lesswillingtoengage
inon the job trainingandapprenticeshipsandafocuson employingthroughthe traditional higher
educationsystemhasbecome the more popularapproach.Inthe recentapprenticeship
implementationplan,publishedinJuly2014,it was commentedthat “Outside of the existing
apprenticeshipsectorsmanycompanieshave limitedinvolvementinformsof workbasedlearning.
Indeedovertime FÁSdeveloped35traineeshipsof whichonly8are currentlyactive”.
The apprenticeshipimplementationplan2014 has laidoutthe future of apprenticeshipsinIreland.
The plan aimsto consultwithemployerstograspthe level of demandforapprenticeship
programmesandin whatsectorsis there a demandforapprentices.The NationalCompetitiveness
Council hasalsocommentedonthe needtoimprove apprenticeshipprogrammesinIreland.Stating,
‘Whendesigningnew apprenticeships,itisessential thatemployersengagewithandcontribute to
the developmentgroupsonissuessuchascurriculadesign.All apprenticeshipsmustadequately
equiplearnerswiththe skillsrequirednecessaryforthe workplace.Employersmustalso
demonstrate awillingnessandabilitytoprovide the necessaryon-the-jobtraining.’(Departmentof
Educationand Skills,2014)

10. 9
Cost competiveness
Cost of property,costof labourandenergyare the three mostsignificantcostfactorsformost firms.
There has alreadybeenproof thatsince the recessionoccurred,thatcostreductionsconnectedto
the exclusionof lotsof capacityrestricts,thishascausedan improvedinternational competitiveness.
Thisgivesourenterprisesadvantageswhentryingtosell intoforeignexportmarkets,improves
competitivenessathome,alsomakesIrelandamore attractive suggestionforinternational
investors. Thisiswhywe thinka furthercut in cost competivenesswouldhelpthe economygreatly.
We are goingto write abouttwo of the majorcost of doingbusiness,costof propertyandcost of
energy.
Cost of Property
We are goingto be lookingatcost of propertyfirst,housespricesand residential rentals have the
possibility toproduce knockonconsequence intermsof pricesandwagesthatwill affectthe entire
economy.The firststepwe wouldlookatisreplacingcommercial rateswithsite value tax tohelp
Irelandcompetitivenessin the future.Whatismeantbythe phrase ‘site value tax’isa annually
recurringtax leviedwithoutconcerntohow the land isuseditis consideredone of mosteffective
taxesof propertyintermsof makingthe mostproductive use of the land.Since land isfixed,anon-
discriminatorytax will notaffectsupply.Insteadthiswillencourage efficientlanduse thentaxesthe
value addedbyinvestment,ratherthanvalue createdbythe ownerof the site.Site value tax will
encourage ownerstouse land,sell itonor for privilegeof wastingland.The benefitsof thisare
rejuvenationof town,more developmentof landaslesspeople wouldbe inclinedtoreserve
undevelopedlandasthere be an annual levyonit,couldincrease availabilityof landforhousingas
marketneedsgrow.The reasonI thinkwe needtoreplace commercial ratesisthatit isnot proving
enoughincentiveforbusinesstoexpand. Thismake itveryimportanttomanage propertycostand
we thinkthe bestway toreduce thisproblemisto swapcommercial rateswithasite value tax and
backingthe longterm developmentof the propertysector.
Energy
The secondcost that isa majorissue ingettingIrelandeconomy togrow isenergy.The costs of fossil
fuelsare increasingmakingthe costof doingbusinessmore expensive.Energyisessential for
company’sinputsandIrelandneedstoconfirmadequate regional spare networkcapacitytomeet
an increase incompany’sdemandthishelpsgrowthinthe economy.EUenergypriceshave increase
significantlyresultinginthe EU beenthe mostexpensive place forelectricityandgasgloballyand
Irelandbeingamongthe mostexpensivecountriesforelectricity. We thinkthe bestwaytosolve this
problemistolowerenergycostovertime byundertakingcontrollable cost,takingmeasuretobetter
energyefficiencyandencourage renewableenergyresources.
If these twomajor costswere to improve itwouldincrease Irelandcompetitivenessasitwouldadd
to the attractionsthat Irelandalreadyhas.

11. 10
Technology
We thinkanimprovementinthe technologysectorcouldbe akeyelementinhelpingIreland
competitivenessinthe future.Technologyhasbecome one of the mainsource of moneyforour
economyasit supplymanyjobsforexample jobsinsoftware,engineering andlife science.Here a
quote that I thinkshowsaworthysample of whatthe technologysectordoesforoureconomy
“software,engineeringandlife sciencessectorscreate highvalue addedjobsandare alreadythe
fastestgrowingsectorsforexportsbyindigenousIrishcompanies,growing at15 to 20 percent
annually”(Coghlan,2013).Thisis whywe thinka furtherinvestmentandplanningintothe
technologysectorwill helpthe growthof the economyasshowninthe past a positivesresults.For
the technologysectortogrow inIrelandwe needtostart focusingonIrishtechnologycompaniesby
gettingthemfroma small start upto large sustainable businessbyinvestingmoneyintothematthe
start to assistance themexpandthis will helpusreachoutto targetinternational markets. Foran
example of thisisHavokIrishindigenousfrimthathasoperationsinmore than10 countriesand
Havok software istargetedtowardslarge companiessuchas Microsoft,Sonyand Nintendo.We
thinkmore company’slike thiswouldhelpthe growthof the Irisheconomyasitassistance with
competitivenessinthe future of the technologysector.
Irelandhasa respectable technologysectorthathasattractedmany companiesinthe pastand this
iswhy we thinka furtherinvestmentintothissectorwouldbe akeywayto make Irelandamore
competitivenessplace toothercountries.

12. 11
IDA Ireland and their role in helping Ireland regain its competitiveness
IDA Irelandisthe agencyresponsible for the countriesindustrial development.Itwasfoundedin
1949 as the International DevelopmentAuthority,andwassponsoredbyFine Gael ministerDaniel
Morrissey.Theyare responsibleforattractinganddevelopingforeignindustryandenterprise in
Ireland.Inrecentyears,theyhave beentargetinghighgrowthcompanies.Theseare companiesthat
are lookingtoupscale andinternationalise theiroperations.Thesecompaniesare generallyin
operationundersevenyearsandhave aturnoverbetween$30m-$70m.Accordingto IDA Ireland,
since 2010 over100 highgrowth global companieshave establishedthere operationsinIrelandwith
theirhelp.The IDA isusingIreland’sattractive ecosystemandproventrackrecordto helpregainits
competitiveness,whichinturn isbringingthese highgrowthcompaniestoourshores.Theyhave set
up a highgrowthteam,ledby Barry O’Dowd,whospecificallyfocusesonthe needsof these
companies. (Ireland,IDA,2014) Theyhave uncoveredAll of Irelands positive factorsevendownto
the time zone to showcompaniesthatIrelandreallyisthe bestandmostcompetitiveplace tosetup
business.
“Top entrepreneurialcountry in Europe” (Capital,2014)
There are many attractive perksto settingupyourcompany’soperationsinIreland.Irelandhasa
highlyskilledandflexibleworkforce. Irelandisrankednumber1for the availabilityof skilled
workerswiththe majorityhaving3or 4 year degreesintheirareaof expertise,alsoastreamlined
visaprocessfor non-Europeansmakesbringingworkersfromdifferentoperationsovertoworkhere
easy.Irelandisalsotopof the flexibilityandadaptabilityrankingswhichisnosurprise given50% of
the workforce are underthe age of 35. AnotherelementthatmakesIrelandanattractive prospectis
itslocation.Irelandsitsonthe edge of Europe,manycompaniesthatalreadyoperate here see its
locationasperfect,consideringitisa gatewayto EuropeanandAmericanmarkets.Ourtransport
infrastructure alsohelpsnonweb-basedcompaniesdistributeitsproductswithease.One of the
mainreasonsforIrelandbeingcompetitive overthe yearsisitslow tax rate and R&D Tax credit.As
discussedinpreviousparagraphs,Irelandhas anextremelylow corporate tax rate whichhasplayed
a major role inattractingsome of the world’sbiggestcompanies.Also,witha25% Researchand
Developmenttax credit,companiesinindustriessuchaspharmaceuticalsare attractedto conduct
theiroperationshere.The IDA have numeroustestimonialsontheirwebsite andYouTube channelto
showpotential companiesexamplesof companiesthatmaybe in a similarmarket,reelinginthe
benefitsof operatingoutof Ireland.
“There is a cultural senseof adoption of E-commerceand internetbased businesseshere”
(Wheeler,2014)

13. 12
Conclusion
Irelandisslowly butsurelybuildingrecovery andregainingitscompetitiveness.Withmore
companiesdecidingtosetupoperationshere andmore importantly,Irishownedbusinessesgetting
the helptheyneed,we are recoveringfromthe economicdownturnwe recentlysuffered.Inturn,
thismeansunemploymentisgoingdownandeconomicgrowthhasresumed.The government’s
commitmentinaddressingandimprovingIreland’scompetitivenessisclearlyevidentinthe grants
and schemestheyare providingforbusinesses.Withthe economyonthe mend,accesstofinance
has becomingeasier,whichisessential formostbusinesses,especiallythe SME’s.Banksare finally
lendingagainandwiththe popularityof crowdfundingitgivesbusinessesanothertrendtoraise
funds.Inour opinion,withfinance beingslowlymore accessible,entrepreneurswhomighthave
beenafraidtogo aheadwithan ideamightknow feel itisfinallyfeesable. Enhancingthe countries
skill base,apartfromthe lowcorporationtax,is probablythe mostattract aspectof our economy
withso manypeople havingcollege degrees.Asseeninthe IDA research,we have anextremely
highlyskilledyoungworkforce.ThisdefinitelyhelpsIrelandstandoutandreallyshowsitisa
competitiveplace forbusinesswitheasyaccesstoqualifiedstaff. The twomajorcosts to operating
inIrelandisthe cost of propertyandenergy,we foundoutthat if we couldimprove these costsvia
changingtaxesandloweringenergycostsbygoinggreenwouldcertainlyhelpregain
competitiveness.The IDA Irelandhave beenatthe forefrontinregainingIrelandscompetitiveness
throughattracting majorcompaniesto our shores,whichinturn,createsjobsandboostsour
economy.

14. 13
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