Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny says he will make it easier for companies to do business in Ireland.
Speaking at the Dublin Founders conference last Friday, attended by many of the world's leading entrepreneurs, Kenny said his government was going to focus on small and medium-sized enterprises, a sector he believes would lead Ireland to prosperity.
Although Ireland's corporation tax is one of the lowest in the European Union (12.5%), the prime minister denies the low tax is the reason the country has attracted companies such as Google, Inc. and Microsoft Corp.
"It is a cornerstone undoubtedly of why companies might invest in Ireland. But no matter what the business is, it is always about people that can actually develop it and grow it," he told The Wall Street Journal Europe at the conference.
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"So all of them are here, and they are not just here because of the [corporate tax] rate, they are here, as the CEO of one Silicon Valley company said, because of the passion of the young people to build and to work the challenges that everybody faces."
He criticized the growth strategy implemented by the previous government.
"For years Ireland used to have a philosophy of get [major enterprises] in here to invest and develop in Ireland and this will sort out our problems. It is good in the sense of building a trade surplus, but we also want to develop what it is that we offer," he said.
"On the one hand our exports are strong. We now have to deal with the indigenous economy which has been flat. We are going to focus on jobs and on small and medium enterprises at which we can excel."
Kenny wants to free up capital for investment and reduce the bureaucratic burden on companies.
"You must make credit available to small businesses and that has not been happening to the extent that we would like to see," he said.
"What we are going to do is to bring in a microfinance scheme for very small operators. Secondly, we are going to legislate for partial loan credit-guarantee schemes which operate well in a number of other countries."
He also said he wanted to cut the red tape.
"We are recognized ... as one of the easiest countries in the world in which to set up a company, but I meet business people who say to me that 'I have had to mortgage the house to start this up here', or 'I have run into red tape at local-authority level'," he said.
"What we want to do is to find out where the stone is under the door and release it so that the thing can flow. I say to business people: show me where the red tape is and I will cut it for you."
The conference ran from Thursday to Saturday and was attended by around 200 entrepreneurs from around the world.
Kenny made it clear that Ireland was open for business.
"My job is to rectify the public finances and hand the country back to the people so they can really have a future, and that is what I will do. This is an essential part of that," he said.
6 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.mairdemalone | Nov 02, 2011, 10:09 PM EDT
Ireland needed a man like Papandreou, a man who listens to the voters, a man who believes in Democracy first! If Greece decides to fall, thanks to Democracy they will rise again. What's worrying all of the billionaire bankers who are behind most of the worlds -including Ireland and Europe- puppet governments, is this fact: they want to increase ordinary people's (because there's more of them) taxes to pay for the RECAPITALIZATION of all of the banks!! The billionaires took their money and ran. So now all of the Central Banks, including the Federal Bank in the States, want more of the "little" people's money. How are they going to do it? They will cry "Poverty!" cry "Ruination!" cry "WE NEED MORE TAXES TO CREATE JOBS!" While they, in the meantime, live lavish life-styles as if they were Gods living above all of us on Mount Olympus!! It is time all of us "little" people stood together and rejected this unfair, unequal treatment. Democracy first!!!!! Greedy bankers second!!! Greedy Businessmen third!! If the banks are allowed to rule Governments, the Public has lost all! Everyon without wealth will become servants of the rich and powerful, the hungry, greedy powerful! The Power belongs to the people!!! Let Democracy Rule!!!
Searlit | Nov 01, 2011, 09:13 PM EDT
I hope he doesn't mean deregulation, when he talks about cutting red tape. That's the road to even worse disaster.
cillowen | Oct 31, 2011, 06:00 PM EDT
are the same crooks worth saving - they are so feverish doing god's work elsewhere but for their own - to hell with self when it comes to sinn fein.
JBRAFTREE | Oct 31, 2011, 11:54 AM EDT
I wish to hell he'd make it easier for some of us by letting Commercial Air traffic land in Shannon.
FastEddy | Oct 31, 2011, 10:42 AM EDT
I think that Irish Politicians are trying to revive The Celtic Tiger and improve the Ireland on-shoring of all the International Corporations that they can find, they need to encourage new and existing customers as well as new and returning employees, over there and over here. ... That's how it works, always has and always will.
LoyalCitizen | Oct 31, 2011, 08:41 AM EDT
I think that Irish Politicians have already asset stripped Ireland and given it away to the most pretentious American Corporations that they could find, they did not need customers.